A man has been slapped with a no-fly ban after allegedly getting violent at the airport.
A 37-year-old New Zealand national has been arrested for allegedly assaulting three people at Sydney Airport, the Airspace Flow Program (AFP) told news.com.au in a statement.
A man named James, who claimed he was present during the incident, recounted what went in an interview.
“A gentleman has come into the airport, of a large nature, and punched a 90-year-old in the stomach, right up against a window,” James alleged during an appearance on GOLD 101.7’s Jonesy & Amanda. “And then a very brave Qantas staff [member] approached the gentleman to try and settle it down. He got head-butted in the head by this guy. I believe there were also a couple of other people as well.”
The AFP largely confirmed James’ story. They told the outlet that the man in question allegedly assaulted an airline employee and two others. Additionally, the AFP said a crowd of people in the terminal stepped in to restrain him until cops arrived.
After his arrest, the man was taken to Mascot police station. He was later transferred to a hospital after a mental health assessment, the outlet reported.
The man was charged with two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm. He is also charged with one count of common assault, per the outlet.
In addition to the criminal consequences, the man “has been issued with a no-fly ban which applies to both Qantas and Jetstar flights,” a spokesperson for the former airline told the outlet.
The ban, the spokesperson said, is because safety is “our number one priority and we have zero tolerance for abusive or violent behavior.”
The man is expected to appear in court on April 2.
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