British man arrested after 'assaulting wife' on BA flight
A British tourist has been arrested after an assault on a woman, believed to be his wife, on a British Airways plane forced the captain to make an emergency landing in Boston.
The incident occurred on a London to Texas flight when Darren Halliwell, 48, allegedly assaulted the woman he was travelling with before arguing with cabin crew, reports Wigan Today.
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The couple took off from Heathrow at 10.33am on Wednesday 8 July on the BA plane bound for Houston.
An argument broke out between them, and other passengers reportedly had to jump in to restrain Mr Halliwell.
The captain decided to make an unscheduled stop at Boston's Logan Airport, where police boarded the plane and led Mr Halliwell away in handcuffs.
Massachusetts State Police released a statement, which they shared on Twitter:
Man Arrested After Incident on Flight: http://t.co/1lyYvmU1jJ via @MassStatePolice
— Mass State Police (@MassStatePolice) July 8, 2015
It read: "A man from the UK is in State Police custody after he allegedly assaulted a woman and caused a disturbance on a transatlantic flight this morning.
"Darren A Halliwell, 48, of Aspull, a village in Greater Manchester County in England, is currently charged with interfering with a flight crew. Additional charges related to the alleged assault are possible.
"Troopers met British Airways Flight 195, on which Halliwell was a passenger, when it landed at Logan Airport shortly after noon.
"State Police had been notified that the flight was being diverted to Logan after Halliwell allegedly assaulted a woman he was travelling with and became disruptive. Out of respect for her privacy we are not naming her or commenting on her relationship to the defendant."
According to the Mirror, a spokesperson for BA said: "British Airways Flight 195 had originated in London and was heading to Houston. After the defendant's removal from the flight, the plane continued to its destination.
"Our customers and crews deserve to enjoy their flights, and not to suffer any form of abuse.
"This sort of behaviour will not be tolerated, and the captain took the decision to divert the aircraft to Boston as a precaution.
"The matter will now be handled by the police."
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