Unruly Passenger Tased 10 Times Before Takeoff

Cops say he groped female passenger
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 24, 2018 2:06 AM CDT
Updated Apr 24, 2018 6:33 AM CDT
Unruly Passenger Tased 10 Times
This photo made available by the Miami-Dade Department of Corrections shows Jacob Garcia in Miami.   (Miami-Dade Department of Corrections via AP)

An unruly passenger on a flight from Miami to Chicago never made it off the ground before he was Tased 10 times and removed from the plane, police say. According to a police report, 28-year-old Jacob Garcia was initially moved to a different seat on the American Airlines flight after a female passenger accused him of groping her. Police say they were called after Garcia started screaming insults at the woman and her boyfriend, the Miami Herald reports. All passengers were told to leave the plane but Garcia refused to exit the aircraft and wrapped his legs around a seat, yelling at officers to "try it and see what happens."

"He was just being really argumentative, kind of combative with everyone," passenger Kaitlin Water tells CBS Miami. Police say that during the struggle, which was captured on video, an officer discharged his Taser, which cycled 10 times "due to Mr. Garcia's actions and the close quarters of the engagement." Police say that after they carried Garcia off the plane, still yelling, he went limp to make himself harder to move then grabbed the gun of an officer, who slapped his hand away. The flight to Chicago took off an hour late without Garcia, who was booked on charges including battery, disorderly conduct, and resisting an officer. (More unruly passenger stories.)

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