An Irish man could get up to 20 years in a United States prison for his behavior on a flight from Dublin to New York City earlier this month. He allegedly refused to wear a mask, mooned a flight attendant, and threw an empty can at another passenger’s head.
Shane McInerney, 29, of Galway, Ireland, was reportedly on his way to a new soccer coaching gig in Daytona, Florida, when he allegedly acted out in a belligerent manner on the Delta Air Lines flight January 7, according to the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
He “repeatedly refused to wear a facemask despite being asked dozens of times by flight crew personnel to put on a mask,” an arrest affidavit asserts, according to the outlet.
Over the course of the eight-hour flight, he also “threw an empty beverage can” that struck another passenger’s head, the affidavit says.
According to Sunday World, he also got up from his seat and walked to first class where he complained about his food before mooning flight attendants:
“The defendant who had an economy class seat walked to the Delta One class section of the airplane; complained about his food to one of the flight attendants and – in the process of being escorted back to his seat – pulled down his pants and underwear and exposed his buttocks to the individual,” the complaint said.
The captain reportedly spoke to the soccer coach during the flight, and McInerney allegedly placed his hat on the captain’s head.
“The defendant also put one of his fists up close to (the captain’s) face and said: ‘Don’t touch me,'” the complaint states, per the Daytona Beach News-Journal.
The flight crew entertained the idea of stopping at another airport to remove the unruly passenger but continued on to New York, court documents say, according to Sunday World.
“On the plane’s final descent, when passengers were told to be seated and belted, McInerney ‘stood up, left his seat, entered the aisle and refused to sit back down,’ according to the complaint,” the Daytona Beach News-Journal wrote.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey arrested McInerney once the plane landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens.
“He has been charged with interfering with flight crew – a crime that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years behind bars,” Sky News reports.
McInerny made an appearance in court last week. He posted a $20,000 bond, according to a tweet from Sam Sweeney of ABC.
Delta Air Lines released a statement on the incident stating it “has zero tolerance for unruly behaviour at our airports and aboard our aircraft as nothing is more important that [sic] the safety of our people and our customers,” according to Sky News.