Passenger restrained on flight from Denver to Houston after punching, breaking window
HOUSTON (KRDO) – A man on board a Frontier Airlines flight en route to Houston from Denver had to be restrained after he became combative and began to punch seats and a window, eventually breaking the Plexiglas.
According to the Houston Police Department, the mid-air disturbance began about 20 minutes after takeoff, when a woman asked the man behind her to switch seats.
Passenger Victoria Clark told ABC News that's when the man became enraged and started to kick the woman's seat and try to break the window.
"I started having a panic attack," Clark told ABC News. "[I thought] it could be a terrorist attack."
Passengers say the man continued to hit the window until he eventually broke the Plexiglas. The man's blood could be seen around the window and the ceiling of the aircraft after the glass cut his hand, a passenger told ABC News.
There was no air marshal on board the flight, prompting several passengers to take action to restrain him. Using zip ties, belts, and boot laces, they managed to secure him in his seat for the remaining two hours of the journey to Houston.
According to ABC News, Houston police were already on the scene by the time the plane had landed and spoke with the man at a gate of George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
Frontier Airlines declined to press charges at the scene. The FBI is involved in the investigation since it happened in the air, but since the man is not currently facing charges, his name was not released.
