An incident on an international flight from Colombia to Florida has led to the apprehension of a Polish man on charges of assault on an officer.
The individual reportedly punched an officer and had to be pulled off the flight. The altercation unfolded on the parked plane at the Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport in Barranquilla, where the man had to be subdued and arrested by the Colombian police after becoming extremely disruptive.
The man, who remains unidentified, was captured on video arguing with another male passenger onboard Spirit Airlines flight 239, scheduled to go to Fort Lauderdale, as it waited at its gate to take off on Sunday, Dec. 17.
“You wish you could be in America,” the man said, according to the New York Post.
The officer arrived on the plane and sought to stop the confrontation. To restrain the man, the cop put the man in a chokehold, which caused the man to buck back. The passenger retaliated with punches and aggressive grabs, eventually causing him to fall into one of the rows. Despite a final charge, the man was ultimately stopped, wrestled to the floor, and taken into custody by the police.
According to Police Gen. Jorge Urquijo, the man was intoxicated when law enforcement arrived on the scene. As he was being removed from the plane by two police officers and a flight attendant, he barked “f—k you, b-tch” at the person he was initially arguing with.
The police said the man was upset because he is currently in a custody dispute with his son’s mother, who currently lives in Colombia. The officer was later interviewed on a foreign radio show, Blu Radio, and shared that the family court did not rule in the man’s favor regarding custody of the child, “and according to preliminary information, this would have led to his state of alteration coupled with alcohol consumption.”
Urquijo further stated the individual, who reportedly does not have a criminal record, is “being prosecuted for the crime against a public servant, and in the next few hours, he will be placed at the disposal of the competent authorities.”
Spirit Airlines released a statement that noted their position on aggressive and violent passengers.
“We do not tolerate aggressive behavior of any kind, and this passenger is no longer welcome on any of our flights,” a representative for the airline said, adding, “We will provide any necessary assistance to the relevant authorities as they investigate this matter.”
He has also been banned from traveling on the airline again.
The flight ultimately arrived in Fort Lauderdale without the inebriated man, albeit three hours late.
