At 37,000 feet, a woman tried to open the plane door because “Jesus told her to”
A woman was taken into custody after an emergency landing in the United States was required when she attempted to open the plane’s side door at 37,000 feet.
Reports from Click2Houston cite court documents from the US District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, which state that 34-year-old Elom Agbegninou claimed that “Jesus told her to open the plane door” while in flight. It happened on Saturday on Southwest Flight 192 from Houston, Texas, to Columbus, Ohio.
After becoming frustrated that flight attendants blocked her path to the emergency exit, Ms. Agbegninou allegedly attempted to open the plane door.
Ms. Agbegninou bit a fellow passenger on the thigh when he tried to intervene and stop her after he was stunned by her behaviour. The man’s finger got stuck in her jaw and he had to pry it out.
Evidence suggests that she went to the plane’s rear and “stared” at the emergency exit. A flight attendant quickly arrived and offered her the restroom or a seat, whichever she preferred.
Later, Ms. Agbegninou reportedly asked a different flight attendant if she could go to the window. When the attendants on board the plane told her no, she pushed past them and grabbed the door’s handle.
Then another passenger overheard someone say, “she’s trying to open the door,” and went to the rear of the aircraft to assist. According to the papers, Ms. Agbegninou bit him at that time.
The woman then began banging her head against the cabin floor and allegedly stated, “Jesus told her to fly to Ohio and Jesus told her to open the plane door,” according to court documents.
Eventually, the disruption on board necessitated an emergency landing at Little Rock’s Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport.
After the victim was brought to safety, officers apprehended Ms. Agbegninou and took her away while they treated the bite wound. The woman told police that she had left the house without telling her husband and was headed to Maryland to see a relative.
Moreover, she “had not flown in a long time,” “became very anxious,” and “normally would not have done such things,” the outlet reports.