A Texas man is facing federal charges after he attempted to play "footsie" with a fellow flier and interfered with the flight crew, causing his Southwest Airlines flight to make an emergency landing in New Mexico.
Justin Riley Brafford, 29, was arrested by the FBI on Tuesday following his behavior on a flight from Los Angeles to Dallas that was ultimately diverted to Albuquerque.
The victim, a passenger who was originally in an aisle seat, alleges Brafford approached her after boarding the plane and asked if he could sit next to her in the middle seat between her and another passenger, according to the criminal complaint.
Brafford then leaned closer to her, putting his arm over her armrest and on her leg. The passenger tried to ignore him by leaning away from him and toward the aisle, according to the complaint.
He then allegedly moved even closer to her and began "playing footsie" with her to get her attention. When he asked her if he was bothering her, she said yes and asked him to stop kicking her.
But, the passenger stated, Brafford continued to kick her and pulled on her sweater before asking her out. Once she declined the offer, the flier whispered "Don't f--- with me" to her, according to the complaint.
A flight attendant changed the victim's seat at her request after she complained of Brafford's behavior. A flight attendant told the FBI he thought the seatmates were a couple because he spotted Brafford putting his head on her shoulder and getting in her personal space.
After the unnamed victim's seat was moved, Brafford allegedly confronted her in her new seat. When the flight attended addressed the matter with Brafford, he alleged stood up and yelled at him, using profanities. Other flight attendants contacted the pilot and they decided to divert the flight to remove Brafford from the plane.
In his audio statement, Brafford claimed he felt like he and the victim "were connecting" and he put his hand on her leg but then "felt like he went too far, may have misread the situation and removed it."
He also told the FBI that he used meth the day before the flight and overdosed on heroin on Oct. 13. He threw in that God was talking to him on the plane.
Brafford appeared in federal court Wednesday on a criminal complaint charging him with interfering with and intimidating members of a flight crew and flight attendants while on an aircraft, a felony charge, and simple assault, a misdemeanor charge.
If he's convicted of the interference and intimidation charge, he faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The simple assault charge has a maximum penalty of a year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine.
