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A United Airlines passenger was restrained by fellow travelers after he was seen repeatedly kicking a seat on a recent flight from Austin to Los Angeles. The man, whose identity remains undisclosed, was seen in a video holding onto an aisle and exit row seat while forcefully kicking the middle seat. According to The Daily Mail, the shocking incident was recorded by Gino Galofaro, a San Diego-based addiction counselor, who also helped restrain the man.
In the video, the man, dressed in a dark jumper, grey sweatpants, and white Nike trainers, can be seen using his right foot to stamp on the seat for around 25 seconds. The clip ends with the man jumping on the seat in what appears to be a final attempt to dismantle it. The reasons for the man's behavior remain unclear.
Galofaro, who runs the addiction treatment service Hope Interventions, told The Daily Mail, "I woke up to him kicking the seat. The flight attendant walked by a couple of times, nobody was doing anything. I restrained him and two other passengers were already getting zip ties so we zip-tied his hands and feet and seat belted him to the seat. We were 40 minutes from LAX. Police came onboard when we landed."
Following the incident, United Airlines confirmed that the individual had been banned from taking any further flights with the carrier.
A spokesperson for the airline said, "Local law enforcement met United Flight 502 upon arrival at Los Angeles International Airport after a customer became disruptive. We thank our crew for helping address the situation and working to ensure the safety of everyone on board. We've banned this customer from future United flights."
You can watch the wild video below: