A shocking incident unfolded on a United Airlines flight from San Francisco to Washington Dulles this week when a Florida man, identified as 44-year-old Everett Chad Nelson, brutally assaulted a deaf and nonverbal passenger who was asleep. The violent episode, which occurred about two hours into the flight, left the cabin splattered with blood.
According to a criminal complaint, Nelson got up to use the restroom and upon returning, he stopped at seat 12F and began to attack the sleeping passenger. The assault was so severe that it drew blood, leaving the victim with a split nose and two black eyes.
Sandhya Gupta, a passenger seated a row behind the victim, recounted the horrifying scene to ABC 7 News. Gupta described the attack as vicious and violent, far beyond a simple scuffle. Nelson allegedly continued his assault for a full minute before another passenger intervened and pulled him off the victim.
Following the altercation, a doctor who happened to be on board treated the injured man. It was during this time that the crew and passengers discovered the victim was deaf and nonverbal. The victim communicated with the crew through text messages, expressing his fear and confusion over the unprovoked attack.
The complaint states that Nelson did not appear to have any injuries and there was no evidence that the victim had attempted to defend himself. After the incident, flight attendants moved Nelson to a different seat and assigned the passenger who had intervened to keep an eye on him until landing.
The motive for the attack remains unclear, and there is no indication that the two men knew each other prior to the flight. Gupta shared that during a text exchange with the victim, a flight attendant mentioned that Nelson had claimed the victim had attacked him on the street earlier. However, the victim denied ever having seen Nelson before.
The flight, which had 82 passengers and six crew members on board, was classified as a “Level 2 disturbance” by the TSA, indicating physically abusive behavior. The FBI was alerted mid-flight. Upon landing, the plane was met by paramedics and local law enforcement.
United Airlines issued a statement praising the quick action of the crew and passengers in restraining Nelson. He has since been charged with one count of assault by beating, striking, and wounding in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States and could face up to a year in prison if convicted.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has reported a rise in unruly passenger incidents, with 1,748 cases so far in 2024, nearing last year’s total of 2,076. However, this is still a significant decrease from the peak of 5,973 incidents in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.