The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has filed a two-count charge against Chiamaka Ubani, an Ibom Air passenger, over her unruly behaviour which caused a flight disruption.
On January 8, Ubani disrupted an Ibom Air flight scheduled
to depart Uyo, Akwa Ibom capital, for Abuja at 5:30 pm because she refused to
travel without her checked-in luggage.
Narrating the incident in a post on X, Michael Achimugu,
director of consumer protection and public affairs at the Nigeria Civil
Aviation Authority (NCAA), said Ubani’s luggage and those of other passengers
were offloaded due to weight restrictions.
Ubani reportedly held the plane hostage until the airspace
was closed, which forced the pilot to announce the cancellation of the flight.
“Her actions ensured that 89 other passengers on board lost
valuable time, money, and opportunities,” Achimugu wrote.
Giving an update on the issue in a post on Wednesday,
Achimugu said police have charged the passenger in court.
He added that “she was released on bail on Friday, January
10, 2025”.
In count one, Ubani is charged with “intentionally and
maliciously preventing the door of the aircraft from closing and causing
obstruction of flight Q1528 from flying, thereby committed offence punishable
under section 436 of the criminal code, cap 39, volume. 2, laws of Akwa Ibom
State.”
In count two the police said: “She constituted herself into
a public nuisance by obstructing flight Q1528 from flying at the scheduled
time, an act which caused inconvenience or damage to passengers already boarded
and the general public and thereby committed an offence punishable under
section 196(1)(f) of the criminal code.”
The case is scheduled to come up before a magistrate court
in Uyo on February 4.
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