A United Airlines flight from Houston to Tulum, Mexico took a strange turn, according to a passenger who says the pilot dragged him out of the bathroom and exposed his genitalia to the other passengers.
The 20-year-old man said he was targeted for his Orthodox Jewish faith. United has not yet responded to the claim.
The passenger, Yisroel Liebb, of New Jersey, says he was in the bathroom at the back of the plane for about 20 minutes, suffering from constipation, when a fight attendant woke up his travel companion from a nap and demanded that he retrieve him from the facilities.
He allegedly told him of his ailment and the pal assured the attendants he would be out soon. Ten minutes later, he says, staff began yelling at him to leave the bathroom.
Unsatisfied, the pilot allegedly got involved and broke open the lock on the bathroom. He reportedly pulled Liebb out "with his pants still around his ankles, exposing his genitalia."
The pilot allegedly forced him back into his seat while making disparaging remarks about Jews. Customs and Border Patrol officials were waiting for him at landing and put him in handcuffs.
He was later released and got a flight back to New York, free and courtesy of the airline, he says.
Liebb filed a lawsuit against the airline last week in Manhattan federal court. He's seeking to be compensated for pain and injuries inflicted, he says, by the handcuffs being too tight and by the pilot's rough handling.