"He claimed he urinated in his sleep, thinking it was a dream"
Airline places the passenger on its no-fly list
A man who accidentally urinated on the passenger sitting next to him on a plane has been placed on the airline's no-fly list. The man claimed that he thought it was a dream and urinated while sleeping.
According to local media SFGATE in San Francisco on the 12th (local time), Jerome Gutierrez, a passenger on United Airlines flight UA 189 in business class heading from San Francisco to the Philippines last month on the 27th, woke up to a sudden wet sensation. Upon waking, he found that his clothes and body were soaked with urine from the passenger next to him, from his abdomen down to his legs.
Gutierrez's daughter, Cornell, described the situation, saying, "About four hours into the flight, the man sleeping next to my father got up and started urinating on him." She added, "He was asleep wearing clothes and a seatbelt." It is known that the man mistook it for a dream and actually urinated.
Gutierrez immediately informed the flight attendants. The crew responded by saying, "To avoid a possible fight, do not approach the man next to you," and handed him pajamas to wear for the remainder of the flight.
Cornell expressed dissatisfaction, saying, "The airline prioritized profit over passenger safety," and criticized that "despite the biological hazard, the plane did not return but continued flying to the destination."
The man who urinated apologized to Gutierrez and reportedly asked him not to press charges. United Airlines stated, "There was a disturbance caused by a passenger on the flight," and added, "That passenger has been included on our airline's no-fly list."
Meanwhile, disturbances caused by urination on planes occur frequently. In August last year, a former American football player was arrested and prosecuted for causing a disturbance by urinating on a female passenger on a plane.
At that time, Massachusetts police arrested former North American professional football (NFL) player Goster Cherilus (40) on charges including interfering with aircraft operation, disturbing the peace, and resisting arrest. He was accused of assaulting one passenger and urinating on another on a Delta Air Lines flight from Boston to Dublin.
When boarding the plane, Cherilus appeared intoxicated and argued with flight attendants over seating immediately after boarding. About an hour after takeoff, he urinated for approximately 20 seconds in front of an elderly passenger while exposing himself. On his way back to his seat, Cherilus assaulted another passenger and sat in that passenger's seat. Ultimately, Delta Air Lines decided to return the plane, stating, "There is a violent passenger urinating on other passengers onboard."
In court, Cherilus claimed his innocence and issued a statement on social media. In the statement, he said, "The flight was delayed about four hours and took off after 12:30 a.m. Preparing for an unexpected night flight, I took a sleeping pill I usually do not use, which caused me to behave out of character," and apologized to passengers and crew.
Previously, in 2022, there were consecutive incidents of male passengers urinating on other passengers and causing disturbances on Air India flights. On November 26, 2022, a male passenger on a New York to Delhi flight, intoxicated, urinated on a female passenger sitting next to him and caused a disturbance. The airline subsequently banned him from flying for 30 days.
However, a similar incident occurred ten days later. A male passenger on a Paris to New Delhi flight urinated on empty seats and other passengers' blankets. The man was detained by authorities upon arrival at the airport but was released after reaching a settlement with the victims and submitting an apology letter. India introduced regulations in 2017 that prohibit passengers who cause disturbances or fail to comply with control measures from flying for a minimum of three months to over two years, depending on the severity of the behavior. However, Air India was criticized for inadequate response due to improper application of these regulations in a series of incidents.
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