SAN FRANCISCO (KNX) – A Virgin Atlantic flight from London to Los Angeles was forced to make an unscheduled landing on Tuesday after a passenger became disruptive and violent, according to a statement from the airline.
The aircraft diverted to Salt Lake City on its way to Los Angeles, and when it landed, the unruly passenger was removed and arrested by Salt Lake City police, NBC News reported.
The passenger, William Stephen Hayes, 39, of the United Kingdom, was arrested on suspicion of being violent and unruly on an international flight, the department shared in a press release.
Hayes has been charged with interference with a flight crew and assault by striking, beating, and wounding in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States.
Statements from witnesses filed in the U.S. District Court of Utah depicted precisely what happened with Hayes, saying that he "was loud, disruptive, threatening and abusive to other passengers and to crew members."
Hayes also reportedly spat on and attempted to bite a passenger near him on the flight, along with trying to start fights, the documents say, CNNreported.
"At one point during the flight, Hayes assaulted a male passenger seated in front of him, grabbing the passenger's shirt, attempting to hit him, and grabbing his throat," the documents state.
A few passengers reportedly restrained Hayes with the help of crew members, and he was placed in handcuffs. But the fighting didn't stop there as he continued to kick the windows of the aircraft.
FlightAware.com reported that the flight touched down in Salt Lake City just after 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
When police and U.S. Customers and Border Protection officers got on the flight, Hayes was still struggling with passengers and flight crew members, the police department reported.
The Virgin Atlantic flight eventually made it to Los Angele, once Hayes was removed from the flight, four hours after the scheduled arrival time, the airline shared in a statement.
"The safety and wellbeing of our customers and crew is always our top priority and we don't tolerate any behavior that compromises this," the airline said. "We always want our customers to have the best experience when they fly with us and our cabin crew are highly trained to deal with any individuals that may impact that experience for others."
As for Hayes, he is currently being held in a Salt Lake County Jail. An investigation was still ongoing as of Wednesday to understand why Hayes began acting as he did, but police shared it will be referred to federal prosecutors.
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