An American Airlines passenger who was taped to his seat and gagged after trying to open the cabin door during the flight has been charged

 

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is suing an apparently distraught American Airlines passenger who created a chaotic scene as he attempted to open the front cabin door during the flight and forced flight attendants to tape it to a seat.

Heather Wells of San Antonio, 34, kicked and spat on staff and other passengers about an hour into a July 6, 2021 flight from Dallas to Charlotte, North Carolina. The plane was delayed about three hours before finally departing at midnight, Fox News Digital previously reported.

In viral footage of the incident posted by TikTok user @lol.ariee, the gray-haired woman could be heard screaming “You! You! You!” as passengers exited American Airlines Flight 1774 and flight attendants calmly waved goodbye.

In 2022, the FAA fined Wells a record $81,950 in civil penalties, Business Insider reported. Now, U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the FAA in San Antonio seeking to collect that money, according to the San Antonio Express.

According to the lawsuit filed June 6, Wells “wanted to leave” after drinking a nice Jack Daniel’s, running to the front of the plane and grabbing the handle of the front cabin door.

He began “speaking incoherently to passengers, before crawling towards the main cabin” and threatened an intervening flight attendant. Wells went towards the front door again shouting profanities before two more stewards held her back.

Before being restrained using flexible handcuffs, Wells managed to hit an employee in the head several times, according to the lawsuit reviewed by the San Antonio Express.

“Eventually, the flight attendants and the passenger were able to restrain the defendant with duct tape and flex handcuffs and seat her,” according to the document.

Flight attendants gagged Wells in an attempt to stop his screaming outbursts. Even while bound and gagged, Wells continued to “kick and spit and attempted to bite and headbutt a flight attendant and passengers,” the lawsuit states.

Police were standing by on the Charlotte tarmac when the plane hit the tarmac, but Wells continued on after landing.

“Ultimately, the defendant had to be sedated to be removed from the plane by law enforcement and medical workers,” according to the document.

According to the lawsuit, Wells violated federal aviation rules by attempting to gain access to the flight cabin, interfering with and threatening the flight crew, and posing an imminent threat to passengers and staff.

The Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department could not be reached as of this writing to respond to whether criminal charges have been filed.

 

https://www.foxnews.com/us/american-airlines-passenger-who-duct-taped-seat-gagged-after-trying-open-cabin-door-mid-flight-sued

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