Air Passenger Duct-Taped To Seat After Violent and Racist Outburst: ‘He Bit My Hand’
Watch full video on TMZ
A passenger on an American Airlines flight from Dallas to Newark was subdued and restrained after he struck another passenger and used racist and homophobic slurs, TMZ reported on Friday.
TMZ obtained photos and video of the incident, which happened on Thursday and prompted the plane to be diverted to Baltimore. Witnesses said the man appeared drunk. The outlet reported :
According to eyewitnesses … all the madness kicked off Thursday night as the plane was flying from Fort Worth to Newark … and the man — who appeared drunk — started yelling at a male passenger next to him.
Our sources tell us the man was screaming about Jesus and going to hell, prompting a Black flight attendant to walk over and attempt to calm the situation.
We're told the man called the flight attendant the n-word and also hurled anti-gay remarks using the f-word. Our sources say the man's behavior became more intense and violent as he hit the passenger next to him and struck the guy's computer.
TMZ said a woman attempted to assist the man, but the unruly passenger pushed her. A photo of the aftermath shows the man sitting duct-taped to a seat with his hands restrained on his lap.
CBS News spoke with one witness who said the unruly passenger had his hands around the neck of his seatmate.
"Just like a light switch, all of a sudden, it went from quiet to yelling and chaos," said Juan Mejia, a retired law enforcement officer. "I turned around to look, and the poor gentleman that was sitting next to him in the aisle seat, the individual had his hands around his neck and was, like, assaulting him."
He added, "Everyone who was in first class was basically victimized by his spewing of hatred and the discrimination, and the hostility, and vulgarness that was coming out of his mouth."
Mejia told CBS News that the passenger bit him.
"He bit my hand. He didn't break skin, just left teeth marks on my hand. We were covered in his blood," Mejia said. "He was bleeding quite a bit from cuts that he inflicted on himself."
A spokesperson for American Airlines confirmed to TMZ that the flight was diverted because of a "disruptive customer.
"On Sept. 3, American Airlines flight 618 diverted to Baltimore (BWI) due to a disruptive customer," the spokesperson said in a statement. "Upon arrival, law enforcement met the aircraft and assisted with deplaning the customer before the flight continued to its destination. The safety and security of our customers and team members is our top priority and we do not tolerate violence. We thank our team members for their professionalism and our customers for their understanding."
Passengers behaving badly is not a new phenomenon, unfortunately. Last year, a Breeze Airways customer twice broke out of his restraints on a flight after he yelled racial slurs and brandished a skateboard.
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