A California man is facing federal charges for choking and assaulting flight attendants during a trip to San Francisco this week that had to be diverted to another airport, the Justice Department said Thursday.
Charles Angel Salva, 30, of Fremont is charged with interference with flight crew members and attendants. He appeared in federal court on Thursday.
On Monday, Salva was on Frontier Airlines Flight 3581 that departed John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana bound for San Francisco International Airport, a federal court complaint states.
Just after takeoff, as the plane was below 10,000 feet and climbing, flight attendants noticed that the oxygen masks in one row of the middle of the aircraft were out of the overhead compartment.
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When they looked, they discovered that Salva had his hand in the overhead compartment, authorities said. A passenger told investigators that Salva appeared claustrophobic and that it seemed like he wanted to get off of the plane.
The passenger said Salva pulled the oxygen masks down from the overhead compartment and got his hand stuck. He then began yelling obscenities and said, "We are all going to hell" and "This airplane is going down," according to court documents.
A flight attendant restrained him as he tried to grab passengers, authorities said. Salva then allegedly ran toward the back of the aircraft and grabbed the lanyard around a flight attendant's neck and said, "I’m going to choke this b----," while trying to choke her.
He also pushed another flight attendant "with force" and said he was going to kill everybody, federal prosecutors said.
Passengers tried to restrain Salva as he kicked the second flight attendant in the leg. The plane was diverted to Ontario International Airport in Ontario, California, where authorities boarded the plane and saw passengers holding him down.
Salva was eventually placed on a gurney by responding officers, restrained with soft cuffs and taken to a local hospital. The flight attendant whose leg was allegedly kicked by Salva was taken to a hospital for medical treatment.
"We extend our utmost appreciation to the flight crew for their professionalism and to the other passengers who assisted during the incident, as well as local and federal law enforcement, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California, for their efforts to ensure justice," a Frontier statement to Fox News Digital said.
A passenger told investigators they were flying back to San Francisco with Salva and his 3-year-old daughter after spending the weekend at Disneyland. On Sunday, Salva left his daughter with the unnamed passenger and their family and then disappeared, court documents state.
The passenger said they later received a call from the Anaheim Police Department informing them that Salva had been found covered in sewage at a liquor store.
During a police interview, Salva allegedly said, "I’m a child molester," and that he had molested his 3-year-old daughter multiple times before losing his custody rights.
He allegedly admitted to taking ecstasy before boarding the plane. He also said he thought everyone was trying to get him to admit his crimes, so he tried to pull the emergency flight button so that the plane would crash, authorities said.
He assaulted the flight attendants because he didn't want anyone to know he was a pedophile and that he heard voices saying words that triggered thoughts of him being a pedophile, he allegedly told police.
Salva faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
