American Airlines Passenger Restrained With Duct Tape on Flight

An American Airlines flight passenger wreaked havoc on a recent flight, forcing the crew to restrain him with duct tape and zip ties.

The flight from Dallas-Fort Worth to Newark, New Jersey, also had to be diverted to Baltimore late Thursday because passenger, who was not identified, put others at risk.

According to a report on TMZ, man was allegedly screaming racial and homophobic slurs.

https://x.com/TMZ/status/2095928254968348760?s=20

Video footage shows crew and passengers taping the man to his seat while he appeared to put up a fight.

Photos show the man secured to his seat with duct tape and zip ties.

Per accounts from witnesses, chaos started about two hours into the flight. The man started yelling at a male passenger seated next to him. According to TMZ, the man was screaming about Jesus and going to hell.

A flight attendant walked over and attempt to diffuse the situation.

The man called the flight attendant, who is Black, a racial slur. He also shouted anti-gay remarks, according to the outlet. The man also reportedly hit the passenger next to him.

A female passenger was pushed by the man as she jumped in to help, the outlet reported.

"Just like a light switch, all of a sudden, it went from quiet to yelling and chaos," retired law enforcement officer Juan Mejia, told CBS Texas. "I turned around to look, and the poor gentleman that was sitting next to him in the aisle seat, the individual had his hands around his neck and was, like, assaulting him."

Flight attendants handed duct tape and zip ties to three male passengers, who then restrained the man to his seat and held him down .

American Airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the plane was diverted to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. Law enforcement then took the man into custody.

"On Sept. 3, ​American Airlines ​flight 618 diverted ​to ​Baltimore (BWI) ​due to a disruptive customer," the airline said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "Upon arrival, law enforcement met ​the ​aircraft ​and ​assisted ​with ​deplaning the ​customer before the ​flight ​continued to its ​destination."

"The safety ​and ​security ​of our customers ​and team members ​is our top ​priority and ​we ​do not ​tolerate violence. We thank our ​team members for ​their ​professionalism ​and ​our customers ​for ​their ​understanding," the statement added.

The FBI said the Maryland Transportation Police arrested and booked the man on state charges.

"The FBI is currently conducting interviews to gather the facts and will consult with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland to determine if federal charges will be filed," a spokesperson for the agency said in a statement to CBS Texas.