MIAMI – Police are investigating after an unruly passenger on board a flight from Miami to Chicago caused the pilot to divert the plane to Indianapolis Monday night.
American Airlines confirms flight 1284 made an emergency landing in Indianapolis just before 6 p.m. so police could remove a woman and her belongings.
The woman was identified Tuesday morning as Daniela Velez-Reyes.
Passenger Brian Salvi told Local 10 News he heard a commotion about two hours into the flight and that the pilot announced a cabin lockdown on the in-flight intercom. He also said the pilot asked able-bodied passengers for assistance in subduing the woman before the plane landed.
Police at the Indianapolis airport said Velez-Reyes, 25, struck another passenger on the flight, a flight attendant who was attempting to restrain her and the airport police officers that removed her from the plane.
Salvi said officers got on board after it landed and handcuffed Velez-Reyes before removing her from the plane.
"We had to make an emergency landing in Indianapolis, and at that point you could hear her just kind of screaming for her parents, screaming, 'No,' screaming that she didn't do anything," Salvi said. "It was very, very intense."
Velez-Reyes is charged with battery with injury, battery without injury, battery on an officer, criminal recklessness, disorderly conduct and disruption of the operation of an aircraft.
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