A cross-country Delta flight in the U.S. was diverted to Oklahoma after an unruly passenger allegedly made terroristic threats and assaulted two flight attendants, according to police.
The suspect, Stephon Jamar Duncan, allegedly said he was going to take down the plane Friday evening while it was en route from Los Angeles to Atlanta, Oklahoma City police spokesman Jermaine Johnson said.
Duncan works for Delta as a flight attendant but was off-duty at the time, according to the airline.
Delta said he went to the front of the plane and used the intercom system before being stopped by an on-duty flight attendant.
After Duncan allegedly assaulted two flight attendants, an off-duty pilot helped subdue him, Johnson said. Delta said crew and passengers onboard flight 1730 also helped overpower the suspect.
Darren Genet, a passenger on the flight, described a “fracas” as fellow passengers “swooped in” to help restrain Duncan.
“We’re holding him down and he was screaming and crying,” Genet told ABC News. “And then one of the gentlemen on the flight was a Marine, and he came over and they got the restraints, and we kind of all held him down until we got the restraints on. By then he was sort of apologizing.”
“It was pretty scary,” added Genet, a cinematographer and director on his way to Atlanta to see family. “We were just really fortunate that we were able to get this guy down.”
No one was else hurt.
The plane landed in Oklahoma City without incident and the passenger was removed by law enforcement, a Delta spokesperson said. The plane was searched and cleared and then allowed to resume travel to Atlanta, Johnson said.
Duncan was arrested and taken to a hospital after reporting chest pains and exhibiting signs of mental health issues, police said.
This incident comes as the TSA screened over 2 million people at airport security checkpoints Friday — the first time topping 2 million since the start of the pandemic.
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