Florida Man: Emmanuel Hernandez, 42-Year-Old Tampa Real Estate Agent Goes Crazy During Violent Episode at Cartagena, Colombia Airport

A 42-year-old man who calls himself Colombian (see video below) but was born in the United States, man identified as Emmanuel Andrés Hernandez has been inadmitted and is pending expulsion from Colombia following a violent episode at Cartagena’s Rafael Núñez International Airport’s arrivals immigration processing section last Thursday, July 17, 2025. Hernández, while waiting in the immigration line, removed his shirt and then aggressively confronted officials in the migration area, physically and verbally assaulting staff from Migración Colombia and the National Police. He also vandalized electronic equipment, throwing and smashing computers belonging to Colombia’s immigration authority.

Eyewitnesses and published videos show Hernandez displaying erratic behavior. A Daily Mail report states operators of the terminal suspected the individual may have been under the influence of hallucinogenic substances—a claim consistent with the disoriented and unpredictable conduct observed during the altercation. Initial reports stated that Hernandez is a New Yorker, but he claims to hail from the tampa area. Hernandez says the episode started when he removed his shirt because it was hot. Finance Colombia has verified that immigration intake at the Rafael Nuñez International Airport in Cartagena is airconditioned, and no other passengers felt the need to remove their shirts.

Intoxicated American Tourist Disrupts Cartagena Airport, Damages Immigration Booths An intoxicated American, Enmanuel Andrés Hernández, 42, from New York, sparked chaos at Rafael Núñez International Airport in Cartagena, Bolívar, on Colombia’s northern Caribbean coast. On… pic.twitter.com/lnzzhwf6aP

— Cartel Watch (@CartelWatchNet) July 18, 2025

Emmanuel Andrés Hernandez passport. Photo credit: Cartagena Secretary of the Interior.

Airport security and law enforcement personnel intervened, physically restraining Hernández to regain control of the situation. Migración Colombia officials then detained him, conducting standard procedures to determine the extent of the breach regarding public order and safety.

Migración Colombia invoked Article 105 of Decree 1067 of 2015, which permits the forcible removal of non-citizens who pose a threat to public order or institutional security. Under this decree, Hernández was served an expulsion order, placed on a flight back to the United States, and issued a ten-year ban on re-entry to Colombia.
Further, the Mayor’s Office of Cartagena officially condemned the incident, reaffirming the city’s commitment to protecting civil order and institutional respect at all border entry points.

The incident reportedly caused temporary disruptions in immigration processing and alarm among airport personnel and travelers; however, operations returned to normal shortly after security regained control. Authorities have reported no serious damage to structural infrastructure. As can be seen in the video below, Hernandez complains about disrespect from officials and bystanders who started recording him, that they were “violating his privacy,” as though taking off one’s shirt in an airport line is not behavior worth noting.

“What hurts me the most about everything that happened? Being expelled from the country where you spent many years of childhood. Not being able to return to Colombia to hug your parents or perhaps receive forgiveness for your aggressive behavior. What hurts me the most is not seeing my parents in Colombia for 10 years. That really hurts me.”

Hernandez Speaks

Colombian news outlet Impacto News was able to speak with Hernandez, where the traveler laments that after the episode, no airline is willing to transport him back to the US. In the interview, which can be seen below, Hernandez explains that he is from a Colombian family, and was visiting his elderly father. The video shows photos of Hernandez’s family, who had to cut his father’s birthday cake with Hernandez in custody and waiting for expulsion.

” I think it’s that when I took off my shirt, there was an immigration officer or people who were at the airport who started recording me and I told them to please stop, that this was part of my privacy, that they shouldn’t record me, Please don’t record me. And everyone started taking out their cell phones and recording me. And it wasn’t the people who were in the line, it was the people who work for immigration. Who work for the government. Instead of helping me and asking me how I was, they started recording me and that was my reaction because it’s my privacy and it broke my heart that no. If I’m feeling bad, if you’re feeling bad, seriously, Sir, I see you on the street. I try to help you. I don’t try to bring you down or humiliate you or make you feel less. That’s logical. That’s what one expects from a person, especially an official, a person who works for the Colombian government, any government in the world, you know what I mean? And that’s why, and if you watch the sequence of videos, there’s a part where I’m laughing that there hadn’t been any commotion yet and nothing had happened. I was laughing because he was recording me and I told him please don’t record me anymore. I was saying please don’t record me anymore, please don’t record me. Very disrespectful. It’s disrespectful that you record me. And he understood me and I asked him several times. And I think it’s something that, uh, everyone takes out their cell phone to record, but no one reaches out to help right now.”

While violent episodes involving foreign visitors at airports are rare in Colombia, and no charges related to illegal drug use have been leveled against Mr. Hernandez, the government cautions against the potential legal and safety risks linked to visitors consuming psychoactive substances—often without understanding their effects or legal status. In response, Migración Colombia emphasizes that it continues to reinforce protocols to manage disruptive travelers and safeguard public safety.

Emmanuel Andrés Hernandez. Photo credit: Cartagena Secretary of the Interior.

✈️ Expulsan a turista que protagonizó acto violento en aeropuerto de Cartagena.

🇺🇸 El ciudadano estadounidense agredió a funcionarios y causó destrozos. Migración Colombia ordenó su salida.

🗣️ “Cartagena se respeta”, dijo el secretario del Interior, Bruno Hernández. pic.twitter.com/I8xfExYoei

— Red+ Noticias (@RedMasNoticias) July 19, 2025