Shouts and chaos
Law enforcement officer Juan Mejia and Richard Olenick from Otsatkoje reported that the situation worsened about two hours into the flight from Dallas (Texas), CBS News reported.
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“Everything happened suddenly: from calm to shouts and chaos,” said J. Mejia. “I turned around and saw that the person had his hands on the neck of the poor man sitting next to the aisle and was strangling him.”
“He struck one of the flight attendants with a racial insult,” said R. Olenick. “All the passengers practically became victims of his hatred, discrimination, hostility, and vulgarity flying from his mouth,” J. Mejia stated.
J. Mejia and R. Olenick, seated two rows ahead of the rampaging passenger, helped restrain him using adhesive tape and plastic zip ties provided by a flight attendant. The men say the passenger resisted.
“He bit my hand, leaving teeth marks. We were bleeding – he was bleeding heavily from cuts he had inflicted on himself.”
The role of alcohol
The men say they noticed nothing unusual before the outburst and do not know what could have caused it, but believe alcohol may have contributed.
“I remember one of the flight attendants mentioned she had only poured him one drink,” said J. Mejia. Both passengers praised the crew for maintaining calm and professionalism despite the insults and chaos.
Due to this incident, the pilot diverted the plane to Baltimore. Witnesses say the man was tied up for about 15 minutes until the plane landed and local authorities took him over.
“On September 3, American Airlines flight 618 was diverted to Baltimore (BWI) due to a disruptive passenger. Upon landing, law enforcement officers met the plane and assisted in disembarking the passenger, after which the flight continued on its scheduled route. The safety of our customers and employees is a top priority, and we do not tolerate any form of violence. We thank the crew for their professionalism and the passengers for their understanding,” said American Airlines.
The FBI reported that the Maryland Transportation Authority Police arrested the passenger and filed state charges against him.
