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‘Dark laugh, chanting death threats': What triggered brawl on US flight with Indian-origin man
Both men sustained injuries. Ishaan Sharma had a black eye and a cut that required stitches while, Keanu Evans suffered minor scratches.
A 21-year-old Indian-origin man was arrested in Miami after he allegedly attacked a fellow passenger during a Frontier Airlines flight from Philadelphia. The man, identified as Ishaan Sharma of Newark, reportedly assaulted Keanu Evans without provocation soon after takeoff.
Sharma began acting strangely before the attack. He said Sharma was “doing some, like, dark laugh like, ‘ha ha ha ha ha’” and made disturbing statements like, “you puny mortal man, if you challenge me, it will result in your death,” according to Evans quoted by WSVN Miami.
Alarmed by the behavior, Evans notified flight attendants. “He kept threatening me with death,” he said, explaining that he pressed the call button for help.
Evans claimed Sharma then stood up, leaned forehead-to-forehead with him, and grabbed him by the throat, the part Evans said was not captured in the video that has since gone viral.
Also Read | ‘You’ll die’: Indian-origin man attacks passenger on US flight, claims he was meditating
The widely circulated clip shows both men standing on their respective seats as the fight breaks out. Sharma, the Newark resident, appears to be caught off guard as Evans repeatedly punches him, seemingly ambushing him mid-air.
Both men sustained injuries. Sharma had a black eye and a cut that required stitches while, Evans suffered minor scratches.
What Keanu Evans claims
Evans said he came forward to clarify what led to the viral mid-air brawl. “What I hate is that the video doesn’t capture what started the whole thing, you know?” he alleged. “It only captures me defending myself.”
Another recording of the fight shows Sharma lunging at Evans, with passengers shouting and trying to intervene. A flight attendant is also seen trying to separate them, saying, “Sir, you have to sit down.”
Evans added, “You know, he’s looking at me very angrily and we’re looking eye to eye, forehead to forehead, and then he just grabs me by the throat and just starts choking me,” 7News reported.
What Ishaan Sharma's lawyer said
Meanwhile, Sharma’s attorney claimed his client was meditating and that Evans misinterpreted the practice. “My client is from a religion where he was meditating. Unfortunately, the passenger behind him did not like that,” the lawyer told Daily Mail.
Sharma was arrested and charged with battery upon landing. Miami-Dade Sheriff's deputies took him into custody from the airport.
