A magistrate court in Ogba, Lagos, has ordered the remand of Comfort Emmanson, the passenger accused of assaulting airline officials aboard an Ibom Air flight from Uyo to Lagos, at the Kirikiri correctional centre until October 6.
The order was issued on Monday by presiding magistrate O.O. Salami, shortly after Emmanson was arraigned by the police on a five-count charge bordering on assault and wilful damage to property.
According to the charge sheet seen by this newspaper, Emmanson allegedly “shouted at the top of her voice, abused and assaulted flight crew members, and refused to disembark from the aircraft after landing,” an offence said to contravene section 4(1)(a) and punishable under section 4(2) of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Byelaw, 2005.
She was also accused of slapping one Juliana Edward and hitting her cheeks with her right hand, in violation of sections 170(1)(a)(b) and 172 of the Lagos State Criminal Law, 2015.
The defendant also allegedly struck another person, Jokpame Segun, in the face with her slippers. In addition, she allegedly damaged an aircraft divider curtain valued at $2,500 and tore a braided wig worth N110,000 belonging to one of the crew members. The offences are said to contravene the FAAN Byelaw, 2005, as well as sections 170, 172, and 350 of the Lagos State Criminal Law.
Videos of the incident circulating online show Emmanson in a heated confrontation with flight attendants and later with airport security personnel.
Ibom Air, in a statement, explained that the altercation began before take-off from Uyo when Emmanson refused to switch off her mobile phone, as required by standard aviation safety procedures. The airline said a fellow passenger eventually turned off the phone, triggering a furious reaction from Emmanson.
Upon arrival in Lagos, she allegedly confronted the purser who had earlier instructed her to comply with the safety rule and physically assaulted her. Emmanson was immediately bundled out of the aircraft and handed over to the Police.
