A first-class passenger threatening to "kill everyone" on board of his plane later told authorities he wanted to divert the flight because he thought Sinaloa drug cartel members would be waiting for him at the airport, where he would be caught, tortured and killed, Business Insider reports, citing FBI statement.

Passenger Brandon Scott handed a note written on a receipt to an Alaska Airlines flight attendant on a plane heading to Seattle on Wednesday.

"There is a bomb on the plane. This is not a joke. Several pounds of homemade explosives are in my carry on bag. I have a detonator with me. Handle this matter carefully and exactly how I say, otherwise I will detonate the explosives and kill everyone on board.

Many innocent lives are in your hands, do as I demand and everyone will live. Deviate and the consequences will be deadly for all of us. I have nothing left to lose," says an affidavit, quoting the note.

Alaska Airlines Flight 334 from Atlanta to Seattle was eventually diverted to Spokane International Airport after a flight attendant informed the captain, who then spoke to the air traffic controller and airline's security.

An FBI statement said Scott told authorities that the members of the Sinaloa cartel were waiting for him at the Seattle airport to torture and kill him, and that the fake bomb threat was a way to hide from them.