Passenger gropes flight attendant, then tries to break into the cockpit, feds say
A passenger on a flight from New Jersey to Switzerland caused the plane to turn around when he assaulted two flight attendants — sending one to a hospital — and tried to break into the cockpit, federal prosecutors said.
Jan Daeninck of Belgium groped a Swiss International Air Lines flight attendant by grabbing her chest “shortly after” the plane left Newark Liberty International Airport on March 31, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey.
Daeninck shook the woman and started yelling at her before she broke free from him and called for help, a criminal complaint dated Oct. 9 says.
Afterward, Daeninck charged toward the cockpit of the plane and tried to beat down the door, according to the complaint, which says he was cursing, punching and kicking the door. He also threw his body into the door while trying to get inside, the complaint says.
Daeninck demanded the flight crew let him inside the cockpit, then attacked a flight attendant who approached him, according to the complaint.
Daeninck punched and kicked the man and hit him in his head, jaw and upper body, the complaint says.
The flight attendant called for help, and crew members restrained Daeninck outside the cockpit, according to the complaint.
Daeninck, “while restrained on the floor, continued to attempt to assault crew members, including by thrashing, yelling, cursing, spitting, and threatening the flight attendants,” the complaint says.
He threatened to kill the flight crew and tried to bite at least one flight attendant who was holding him down, according to the complaint.
Daeninck, 43, was arrested Oct. 21, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
Information regarding his legal representation wasn’t immediately available.
The criminal complaint charges him with one count of interference with flight crew members and attendants by assault and intimidation, one count of assault, and one count of abusive sexual contact on an airplane.
After Daeninck was restrained on the plane, the flight was diverted back to Newark Liberty International Airport, where it landed, according to prosecutors.
The flight attendant who was beaten by Daeninck was taken to a nearby hospital and treated for injuries, the complaint says.
Daeninck appeared in federal court in New Jersey and was released on a $100,000 bond, according to prosecutors.
Swiss International Air Lines told McClatchy News on Oct. 22 that it “acknowledges and values the efforts of the U.S. authorities in prosecuting cases related to the disrespectful and aggressive behavior of unruly passengers.”
When crimes, including sexual misconduct and assault, occur on flights, the FBI will launch an investigation.
This story was originally published October 22, 2024 at 12:22 PM with the headline "Passenger gropes flight attendant, then tries to break into the cockpit, feds say."
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