Unruly passenger on JFK flight prompts emergency landing
A flight out of Kennedy Airport made an emergency landing after an unruly, foul-smelling passenger refused to wear a mask, snorted a white powder, groped a woman and uttered racial slurs, according to reports.
The suspect was taken into custody when the JetBlue flight to San Francisco made an unscheduled landing in Minneapolis late Sunday afternoon. The 42-year-old passenger, who lives in upstate New York, was charged with drug possession, according to reports.
“So we as a team made the decision to come here,” a JetBlue employee can be heard telling passengers in cellphone video from the flight.
The passenger, the employee said, “made gesturing stabbing motions towards another passenger and was also observed erratic behavior and snorting a white substance.”
One passenger said the man oddly said he wanted a white Porsche, while others said he refused to wear a mask and was using a plastic fork as a potential weapon.
The suspect’s name was not immediately released.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.