After being accused of assaulting two Spirit Airlines flight attendants, making sexual advances to other passengers, and vaping on a flight last month, a Tennessee woman turned herself in to the FBI on Tuesday, the Justice Department announced.
Amanda Renee Henry has been charged in a criminal complaint with interfering with a flight crew after an incident on Nov. 27 on a flight from Fort Lauderdale.
Henry was traveling to Nashville when she allegedly consumed too many alcoholic drinks, resulting in one of the crewmembers making the call to cut her off, the criminal complaint said.
It was at this point that Henry started to be disruptive, appearing to be intoxicated. Witnesses on the flight even shared that she was vaping on the plane.
The 43-year-old is also accused of making other passengers uncomfortable when she touched them and made lewd sexual advances, the complaint said.
Flight attendants asked Henry to switch her seat, located next to the emergency exit, for the safety of the other passengers due to her being intoxicated. She responded to the request by screaming, "I'm getting off this plane."
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At that point, Henry made her way toward the main cabin door, with a flight attendant blocking her path and attempting to restrain her.
A second flight attendant assisted with restraining Henry, who was kicking and pulling the hair of one crew member. The flight attendants were eventually able to handcuff her and put her in a seat after struggling with her, the complaint said.
The flight crew was helped by an off-duty firefighter who sat next to Henry and kept her calm until the plane landed at Nashville International Airport, where police detained her briefly on a public intoxication charge, a news release said, CNN reported.
Following an FBI investigation, Henry was charged with interfering with flight crew members and attendants.
For her actions, Henry is expected to appear in the Middle District of Tennessee on Tuesday, and if she is convicted, she faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
