ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A North Carolina woman who said she wanted to “stab everyone on the plane” then commit suicide was charged with assaulting a federal air marshal on board a flight that landed at Virginia’s Dulles International Airport on Saturday after he attempted to stop her from entering the plane’s lavatory with a lighter, Fox5DC reported.
The incident occurred aboard a United Airlines flight from Frankfurt, Germany. Flight attendants were alerted that a lavatory smoke detector had been activated while in the air and found Dana Ghazi Mustafa in the restroom. As a result, they told Mustafa, 27, that smoking on board the aircraft is prohibited by federal regulations and asked her to return to her seat, which she did, according to court filings.
Once seated, Mustafa was seen crying. She reportedly told flight attendants that she was flying home to see her family but said they had died in a car accident caused by a drunk driver—later determined to be untrue. Flight attendants then moved the woman to another seat to make her more comfortable.
While in her reassigned seat, Mustafa reportedly punched the TV monitor on her seatback and threw a coin at the bulkhead.
A Federal Air Marshal then observed Mustafa leave her seat and walk to the rear of the plane while striking the flint of a lighter, Fox5DC reported. The air marshal also said Mustafa smelled of alcohol, according to the affidavit.
When a flight attendant tried to stop Mustafa from entering the lavatory again, court documents say the woman pushed the flight attendant and tried to close the lavatory door, leading to two Federal Air Marshals intervening.
The suspect fought back against two air marshals on board who attempted to restrain her and place handcuffs on her. During her resistance, Mustafa repeatedly kicked one of the marshals in the shins, Fox News reported.
She was eventually handcuffed and seated next to the air marshals who found a half-empty liter of Absolut vodka visible at the top of her open bag. Mustafa complained, saying, “I was allowed to drink my duty-free bottle of vodka on my previous flight.”
Mustafa also threatened to stab the air marshal and said, “I’m going to stab everyone on the plane then kill myself. I’m Palestinian! That’s how we get down,” according to court documents.
When the plane landed in Virginia, FBI agents arrested Mustafa, who admitted that the story about her family’s deaths was a lie.
Mustafa is charged with assaulting a federal officer and faces a maximum penalty of eight years in prison if convicted.
