Man charged in unprovoked beating of passenger on United flight

By Pete Muntean and Kia Fatahi, CNN

(CNN) — United Airlines crew and passengers had to stop what court documents describe as an unprovoked beating of a man on a flight on Monday.

A criminal affidavit alleges that as Everett Chad Nelson was walking back from the bathroom about two hours into the flight, he stopped at seat 12F and “began physically attacking a sleeping male passenger.”

Nelson punched the still-unidentified man “repeatedly in the face and head until blood was drawn,” court documents say, adding the incident “lasted approximately one minute.”

Court documents add that Nelson attacked the other man “without notice,” and there was “no indication” that the victim fought back “in defense.”

United Airlines released a statement thanking its crew and other passengers on Flight 2247 for their “quick action” in restraining Nelson. United says the flight from San Francisco to Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia “landed safely and was met by paramedics and local law enforcement.”

Court records show that Nelson is being represented by a public defender. CNN has reached out to that attorney for comment.

A witness account

A passenger on the flight told CNN the sleeping man who was beaten appeared to be deaf and nonverbal.

Sandhya Gupta was sleeping in a seat in the row behind the victim when the attack started, and she said the victim was communicating after the attack via sign language and text messages on his phone.

Gupta woke up to the attack unfolding.

“He was just violently punching the man with his fists. Just rapid-fire punching. It was so violent. This was not like a bar fight,” Gupta said.

Gupta recalled how the victim “didn’t fight back. He was just screaming and screaming.”

As the attack continued, two passengers jumped in to help halt the attack and eventually the assailant stopped, Gupta said.

“He went totally limp. He just shut down like a robot. He didn’t make a noise. He didn’t resist. He just turned around and walked a few rows and found an empty seat in the front of the plane. He just sat down. He didn’t do anything until we landed,” Gupta said.

After the attack, a person identifying themselves as a doctor on board rushed to the victim and administered first aid to try and stop the bleeding, Gupta said, recalling how blood splatters were across the window and seats.

Unruly passenger incidents

The FBI is investigating the incident, the most recent case of an unruly passenger on a commercial flight to make headlines. The Federal Aviation Administration says airlines have reported more than 1,700 such incidents in 2024.

“The FAA pursues legal enforcement action against any passenger who assaults, threatens, intimidates, or interferes with airline crewmembers, and can propose civil penalties up to $37,000 per violation,” the agency said in a statement.

Hannah Rabinowitz contributed to this news article.

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