Dubai, United Arab Emirates (CNN) — It appears that former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson has joined the ranks of troubled passengers on flights.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Tyson had an accident on a flight with an aggressive passenger who started harassing him and throwing a water bottle at him while he was sitting in his seat,” Joanne Mignano, a representative for Tyson, said in a statement.
He captured a video obtained by TMZ Sports on a JetBlue Airways flight in San Francisco, according to TMZ.
The video clip shows a man repeatedly punching what appears to be another passenger sitting in the seat behind him.
ICYMI: Mike Tyson seemed to lose his cool on a plane on Wednesday night … repeatedly punching a man in the face after the guy had apparently annoyed him. https://t.co/CzOCl5XMqD
The video posted by TMZ does not show the whole incident, as the water bottle cannot be seen in the footage posted by the platform.
The punching segment lasts about 10 seconds, and another person who appears to be trying to break up the conflict can be heard calling out, “Hey Mike, Mike.”
On Wednesday evening at 10 p.m. PST, “police officers were sent into a physical altercation on board a plane located in the local terminal of San Francisco International Airport,” according to the San Francisco Police Department.
Police said they arrested two people believed to be involved in the incident, and one person was treated for non-life-threatening injuries, according to a statement issued by the Directorate of Disease Control and Prevention.
The police said that this person “provided few details about the incident and refused to cooperate further with the police investigation.”
Both persons were released “pending investigation”, and she refused to identify any of them.
The police department said it was aware of a video that may have documented the altercation, and has shared the video with the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.
San Mateo County Detective Javier Acosta told CNN that the bureau will handle the investigation and declined to name either of the two people, citing the ongoing investigation.
JetBlue Airways did not respond to CNN’s requests for comment.
Tyson was in San Francisco on Wednesday for an event in Golden Gate Park to promote his cannabis brand, according to the event’s website and video posted online.
crack down on riotous passengers
The FAA said Thursday morning it had no report at the time of a runaway passenger accident on a JetBlue Airways flight on Wednesday.
In a statement to CNN, the Department of Transportation said it was “considering all airline reports of passenger disruptions.”
The FAA directed CNN to local law enforcement for more information.
Unruly passenger behavior has increased during the pandemic, with 2021 being the worst year ever in terms of reports of bad behavior on board.
And 5,981 reports of rioting passengers were registered by the Federal Aviation Administration in 2021.
The administration introduced a “zero tolerance” policy on January 13, 2021, after a sharp rise in runaway passenger accidents in 2020.
Under the policy, the FAA said, passengers may be fined for unruly behavior rather than warning or advisory messages, and cases could lead to criminal investigations.
The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed Wednesday that it will make its zero-tolerance policy for unruly passengers permanent.
The announcement came after the federal mask-wearing authorization for public transit was revoked on Monday, and the Justice Department has lodged an appeal against that ruling.
The incident on Wednesday’s JetBlue flight did not appear to involve the wearing of masks, which are not currently required.
However, mask-related accidents currently make up the majority of reports of unruly passenger behaviour.
And in 2022, the FAA had already received 1,233 reports of riotous passengers.