Passenger arrested for trying to open the plane door because 'Jesus told her'
An airline passenger has been accused of going rogue in the middle of a flight in what could have been a deadly incident.
The woman, identified by the courts as Elom Agbegninou, allegedly pushed past a flight attendant and tried to wrench the side door of the aircraft open.
The 34-year-old was detained by a heroic passenger as pilots rerouted to make an emergency landing.
Southwest Flight 192 was travelling from Houston, Texas, to Columbus, Ohio, but instead landed at the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport in Arkansas so the woman could be handed over to federal agents.
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Court documents released by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, cited by news site Click2Houston, reveal the incident began when Agbegninou stood up and made her way to the back of the plane.
Once there, she simply stood and stared intently at the door.
When Agbegninou was told to either use the bathroom or return to her seat by staff, she allegedly refused to do so and asked to look out the window.
The flight attendant and two other staffers declined her request, at which point things reportedly got a little hairy.
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The 34-year-old was accused of shoving past the air hosties and began tugging on the handle of the exit door.
One passenger told Fox News: “They were rushing to the back of the plane to help. I was thinking about the worst case, probably that plane will crash, but I know it’s a very low probability.”
Another traveller overheard someone say she was 'trying to open the door' and sprang into action.
The passenger wrestled Agbegninou to the ground and pinned her there.
According to court documents and officials, the man was bitten repeatedly on the thigh and had to pry her teeth off his leg.
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The New York Post reports that when she stopped biting her captor, she began repeatedly smashing her head against the plane floor.
Court documents revealed she also repeated the phrase: "Jesus told her to fly to Ohio and Jesus told her to open the plane door."
Once safely on the ground, the woman told officers she was going to Maryland to visit a pastor.
She was travelling alone, had left home with no luggage and without telling her husband.
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Southwest Airlines said in a statement to LADbible: "Flight 192 traveling from Houston to Columbus safely diverted to Little Rock after our Crew observed disruptive behavior from a passenger on the flight.
"Local authorities in Little Rock met the flight upon landing and removed the Customer from aircraft.
"The flight then departed and landed safely in the original destination of Columbus, Ohio."
Rachel Lang