MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FLA. (WSVN) - An unruly passenger forced a pilot to make an emergency landing at Miami International Airport.
The scare unfolded aboard a Frontier flight that left Puerto Rico for Chicago just before midnight on Sunday.
According to the arrest affidavit, that flight was forced to divert to MIA after 51-year-old Juan Gabriel Reyes “attempted to open the exit doors of the aircraft when it was still in flight, stating that he wanted to exit the aircraft.”
When members of the flight crew told Reyes to sit down, he “ignored those orders and walked towards the front of the aircraft and attempted to make entry into the pilot’s quarters,” the arrest form states.
The report also states that Reyes urinated all over the floor of the bathroom at one point during the flight.
Reyes eventually returned to his seat, where he then allegedly started choking an off-duty flight attendant who was seated next to him.
A video from aboard the Frontier flight posted to social media shows fellow passengers restraining Reyes in his seat, including Josh Longwood, who was wearing a jiu-jitsu t-shirt and happened to be seated in front of him.
“I instantly jumped in, safely put him against the wall and restrained him. So I am thankful that I was sitting right in front of him,” said Longwood.
A statement from Frontier Airlines confirmed Reyes was taken into custody upon arrival at MIA, allowing the Chicago-bound flight to continue its journey to its intended destination.
“Law enforcement boarded the aircraft in Miami and removed the passenger and the flight subsequently continued on to Chicago a few hours later.”
Reyes has since been charged with battery. With the FBI involved in the case, he may also face additional federal charges.
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