Dallas Pokornik, a former flight attendant from Toronto, has admitted guilt in a U.S. federal court for engaging in a scam similar to the plot of the 2002 movie, “Catch Me If You Can,” directed by Steven Spielberg.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Hawaii, Pokornik utilized counterfeit identification to impersonate a pilot and secure multiple free flights from various airlines between January 2020 and October 2024. Allegedly, he showcased his global travels on social media, including destinations like London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, and Phuket, Thailand.

The 34-year-old was captured in Panama and extradited to the U.S. in January. He now faces a potential prison term of up to 20 years and a fine of $250,000 US after pleading guilty to wire fraud in a Honolulu district court. As part of the plea deal, Pokornik agreed to compensate three undisclosed U.S.-based airlines, one of which is situated in Hawaii.

CJ Ammons, the acting special agent in charge of the U.S. Homeland Security investigations office in Honolulu, condemned Pokornik’s exploitation of travel security measures for personal gain and emphasized that he will be held accountable for his actions.

Prosecutors revealed that Pokornik was previously employed as a flight attendant for a Toronto-based airline from July 2017 to October 2019. Subsequently, he allegedly presented a phony identification badge, falsely asserting his continued affiliation with the Canadian airline to receive pilot-exclusive travel benefits from airlines identified as airlines 1, 2, and 3, including requesting a pilot’s jump seat.

The illicit operation was exposed after an employee from one of the U.S. airlines captured an image of the forged ID, leading to Pokornik’s former employer confirming its fraudulent nature due to an expiration date set in 2027.

Experts in the aviation industry, like former pilot Dan Bubb and aviation management lecturer John Gradek, expressed surprise at the incident, highlighting the evolving challenges posed by sophisticated fraud techniques in the modern era.

Pokornik’s sentencing is scheduled for December 8, and he remains free under specified conditions while awaiting the court’s decision. His case is distinct from “Project Icarus,” a Peel Regional Police-led investigation that recently led to the arrest of a former Air Canada pilot, Geoffrey Wall, accused of flying hundreds of flights without a valid license over a prolonged period.