An American Airlines passenger was arrested after he allegedly attacked an employee of the airline Monday, leaving her “permanent” scarring.
Bruno Luke Machiavelo, 29, was charged with aggravated battery, battery, disorderly conduct and resisting an officer for the alleged assault that happened aboard a plane at Miami International Airport before takeoff, NBC Miami reported.
Machiavelo, from Connecticut, was on an American Airlines flight from MIA to LaGuardia Airport in New York when he asked a flight attendant if he could get medication from his bag.
He told the attendant that he suffered panic attacks and needed his medication from his checked luggage, according to the police report obtained by the local news station.
The airline worker explained that she wasn’t able to retrieve his medication at that time and Machiavelo allegedly responded that he “took planes down with panic attacks in the past,” according to the report.
The flight crew decided to remove Machiavelo from the plane and a manager came over to speak with him. When she approached him, he allegedly began to scream and pushed her away, the arrest report states.
On his way off the plane, he punched the manager in the face repeatedly and threw her to the floor, where she hit her head on the jetbridge, police alleged in the document.
The staffer was taken to the hospital and suffered “permanent scarring” to her face and head, according to the report city by NBC.
Machiavelo is also accused of hurting a second American Airlines staffer, a gate agent, who he allegedly pushed as he ran off the plane. The agent fell to the floor and injured her hands, the arrest report said.
Several other passengers stepped in to control the unruly man — holding him down on the floor of the airport as he kicked and screamed until officers arrived at the gate, police said.
He resisted arrest but was eventually taken into custody and then brought to a local hospital, according to the document.
“Monday evening, law enforcement was requested at Miami International Airport due to a disturbance on the jetbridge where a customer physically assaulted a team member,” an American Airlines spokesperson told The Post. “Acts of violence against our colleagues are not tolerated by American Airlines and we are committed to working closely with law enforcement in their investigation.”
“Our thoughts are with our team member, and we are ensuring they have the support they need at this time.”
This article originally appeared on New York Post.
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