Unruly passenger arrested on diverted Virgin Atlantic flight

Associated Press

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A 39-year-old resident of the United Kingdom was arrested in Salt Lake City on Tuesday on suspicion of assaulting crew members and a passenger onboard a flight from London to Los Angeles.

The Salt Lake City Police Department said that the Virgin Air flight had to be diverted to Utah after William Stephen Hayes became upset mid-flight and had to be restrained by the flight crew. While restrained, Hayes allegedly kicked began kicking airplane seats and windows and injured crew members and a passenger. Police said injuries were minor and the incident left no permanent damage to the plane.

“The safety and wellbeing of our customers and crew is always our top priority and we don’t tolerate any behaviour that compromises this,” Virgin Atlantic said in a statement. “We always want our customers to have the best experience when they fly with us and our cabin crew are highly trained to deal with any individuals that may impact that experience for others.”

Upon arrest, Hayes was transported and booked at the Salt Lake County jail. Local law enforcement said it referred the case to the U.S. Attorney’s office, which typically has authority over international flights. The plane subsequently resumed its flight to Los Angeles.

Charges had yet to be filed as of Wednesday morning and it’s unkown if Hayes had an attorney. The U.S. Attorney’s office did not immediately return request for comment.