Ohio man escorted from United Flight after grabbing passenger’s leg and refusing to let go

An Ohio man was escorted off a flight when it landed in Florida after he allegedly grabbed the leg of a fellow passenger and refused to let go.

Shawn Levan, 48, was taken off the United flight from Washington DC when it landed at Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport.

He was charged with two counts of simple battery, jailed on a $1,000 bond and cannot travel on any flight until a court order allows him to do so.

Mr Levan paid his bond and was released from custody on Tuesday, reported WSVN.

Claudia Mondelo told 7News that Mr Levan grabbed her leg during the flight on Saturday and that his disruptive behaviour began at the ticket counter.

“He was screaming at the ticket counter lady, pretty much everyone heard him because he was extremely loud, so I was surprised when I saw him on the flight,” she said.

She then said that once aboard the flight, Mr Levan’s behaviour continued to be an issue.

“He didn’t want to go back to his seat, he didn’t want to put on his seatbelt, he just wanted to cause a scene,” said Ms Mondelo.

And she described how during the flight, Mr Levan, who was sitting in an aisle seat in front of her, reached back and grabbed her.

“He reached back, he was a tall guy with long arms and long hands, he just grabbed me by my leg, where you can see his thumbprint, he reached me and then he would not let it go,” she said. “I was like, stop touching me, leave me, let me go, let go.”

Ms Mondelo says that other passengers restrained Mr Levan and that her leg was left bruised by the incident.

“It should have been prevented, they should not allow people under stress or with symptoms that are going to cause or create a problem, this is really dangerous, he could’ve hurt everybody,” she added.