3 women charged with assaulting Delta Airlines employees

NEW YORK (CBS)

Three women from Long Island, New York, are facing federal charges for allegedly kicking and punching Delta Airlines employees after they were denied permission to board a flight, the United States Attorney’s Office in the District of East of New York announced Thursday. The alleged assault could land the women in prison for 10 years.

Prosecutors said Jordan Nixon, 21, Janessa Torres, 21, and Johara Zavala, 44, arrived at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport on September 22 for San Juan, Puerto Rico. Their morning flight was delayed by more than four hours. During that time, the women allegedly ordered nine alcoholic beverages, according to a letter from the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Peace Breon to U.S. Judge Vera M. Scanlon today. Thursday asks for bail conditions.

Upon arriving at their gates, agents reported that Zavala had “difficulty walking,” and that Nixon reeked of alcohol, Breon’s letter said. “The defendants were belligerent, with one apparently disoriented and possibly intoxicated, and another refusing to wear a mask properly,” the indictment read.

Several Delta employees allegedly determined that the trio should not have boarded the plane because of such behavior and informed the women that they could rebook their flights later that day.

According to Breon’s letter, the women allegedly refused to leave the pier and began shouting and cursing at security personnel who had arrived at the scene for assistance. Nixon allegedly removed the officer’s radio and beat him repeatedly. When the flight’s gate staff tried to intervene, Zavala allegedly punched them in the face. The agent then called for help.

The security officer fell to the ground and all three women are said to have hit and kicked him. Torres allegedly stepped on the officer’s head and face, causing bleeding. And when the officer tried to leave for help, the women allegedly “pulled him with his vest, tearing the vest off,” according to Breon’s letter.

The crew eventually pulled the staff away, but the three women “continued to scream and attack” the staff. Breon’s letter states that security personnel and airport gate personnel have both been treated in hospital for their injuries and have not returned to work since the attack.

“Accordingly, the defendants brutally assaulted an airline security officer,” Peace said in a statement Thursday. “The extreme and aggressive behavior associated with our air travel is out of control.”

The women were arrested for assaulting aviation security and released on bond. Nixon and Zavala did not appear at a status meeting on January 5. Only Torres’ attorney was present.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, there have been nearly 6,000 reports of unruly passengers in 2021, including more than 4,200 incidents involving masks. More than 1,000 investigations have been started. And so far in 2022, there have been 76 cases of disorderly passenger traffic, as reported by the FAA.

FBI Assistant Director Michael J. Driscoll said the agency is “actively addressing this emerging threat and taking all cases seriously.”

“Anyone who thinks they can get away with this type of unruly behavior should be reminded that their actions are criminal and could lead to the consequences of federal criminal charges in the short term.” he said on Thursday.

The three women were scheduled to be arranged on Thursday.

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