NEW YORK — On Wednesday, a legal representative for Svetlana Dali, the woman accused of illegally boarding a flight from New York to Paris, alongside prosecutors, announced their intention to seek a plea agreement for her case.

At the arraignment, Dali, who is 57 years old, entered a not guilty plea to the stowaway charge and was ordered to remain in custody without bail. Initially released with an electronic monitoring device after her arrest in late 2022, she was taken back into custody on December 16 after officials reported she tampered with the device and attempted to cross into Canada.

During a hearing in a New York federal court, Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke Theodora expressed that the prosecution is eager to “engage seriously in plea negotiations” related to Dali. Her attorney, Michael Schneider, indicated that he would be involved in these discussions with the intent of resolving the matter before it reaches trial. He also mentioned plans to seek a mental health evaluation for Dali.

Dali, a Russian national who holds U.S. residency and is currently unemployed, was discovered on a Delta Air Lines flight on November 26, which was making its way from JFK International Airport in New York to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. Court documents revealed she successfully passed through airport security and boarded the aircraft without possessing a valid boarding pass.

Dali is among two individuals who were apprehended for similar stowaway attempts on flights departing from the U.S. in November and December. Additionally, in recent weeks, there have been two reports of deceased individuals found in the wheel wells of airplanes at U.S. airports.

These incidents have raised significant alarms regarding potential vulnerabilities in aviation security, prompting federal agencies, airlines, and airport officials to refocus their efforts on addressing these gaps.