TAILSPIN

First Class Passenger Duct-Taped to Seat Breaks Silence

Layne Lundeen allegedly had a violent, racist, antisemitic, and homophobic meltdown in midair.

The reaction of a first class passenger who was duct-taped to his seat after an alleged racist, antisemitic, and homophobic violent drunken meltdown has been revealed. Layne Lundeen was forcibly restrained on his American Airlines flight from Dallas, Texas, to Newark, New Jersey, after he allegedly screamed abuse at the man next to him. The alleged meltdown got worse when he tried to assault the neighboring passenger, a woman who tried to defuse the situation, and the flight attendant. He was restrained by two flight attendants and three passengers, one an ex-cop. “I assaulted a police officer? Is that what it says?” Lundeen told a judicial officer in a recording obtained by The Banner. “Oh my god. What a mess,” he added after being filled in on the accusations. The Banner also reported that Lundeen downed two screwdrivers on the plane. The flight was forced to divert to Baltimore, where the man was taken into custody. Lundeen, 67, was fired from his job at an Arizona realty company. He is due to stand trial on October 19 in the District Court of Maryland for Anne Arundel County in Glen Burnie, charged with second-degree assault and disorderly conduct.

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