Charges filed against man who had to be restrained with zip ties after reportedly threatening passengers, flight attendants on Frontier flight

Federal officials said that a passenger on a Frontier Airlines flight had to be restrained with zip ties after making threatening statements.

According to a press release from the US Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of North Carolina, a man appeared in court on Wednesday on charges of interfering with a flight crew and flight attendants.

The flight was diverted to Raleigh-Durham on February 9 due to mid-air threats.

According to court documents reviewed by Insider, prosecutors said the trouble began about an hour after Flight 1335 left New York. Ganter told people that he was being stuck with needles and that his DNA was being collected, prosecutors said.

According to a criminal complaint, Ganter threatened to slap people around him and beat them to death.

A small child and the child's mother were among the passengers that Ganter threatened. According to reports, he said he would kill the child and beat the mother in front of them.

According to the complaint, flight attendants asked other able-bodied passengers to assist them in moving passengers away from Ganter. Authorities said that when several people moved toward Ganter's seat, he became agitated and stood up in an aggressive manner.

The passengers put zip ties on his hands and wrapped saran around his feet as they restrained him. One passenger told officials that Ganter tried to avoid being constrained by flailing his arms and legs. Another passenger said that Ganter tried to punch him, while another said she was thrown into a window to get away from the scene.

The pilot diverted the plane in response to Ganter's conduct, prosecutors said, and local police escorted him off the plane.

According to court documents, Ganter said he felt pokes into his skin and five guys attacked him.

An attorney for Ganter did not respond immediately.

The incident is the latest example of unruly passenger behavior on board planes.

The US Attorney said in the news release that passengers who threaten violence in the close confines of a commercial aircraft put everyone in danger.

More than half of the unruly passenger behavior reported in the next four years was related to masking, according to data from the Federal Aviation Administration. There were over 6,000 incidents in the year.