Khaberni - An Indian passenger attacked teenagers with a metal fork on a Lufthansa flight from Chicago to Germany, leading to a state of panic among passengers and forcing the crew to make an emergency landing at Boston International Airport, where he was immediately arrested.
According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Massachusetts, the accused, Praneeth Kumar Osiribali, aged 28, was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to cause physical harm while traveling on an aircraft within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States.
Court documents indicate that Osiribali stabbed a 17-year-old in the shoulder with a metal fork while he was sleeping in the middle seat, before attacking another teenager of the same age and stabbing him in the back of his head with the same fork, causing a laceration on his head.
After the attacks, the accused exhibited bizarre behaviors; he pointed his hand shaped like an imaginary gun to his mouth, mimicking shooting himself, then approached a female passenger and slapped her on her face, and attempted to attack one of the aircraft crew members before passengers and crew were able to control him.
According to U.S. authorities, the flight was diverted to Logan International Airport in Boston, where the suspect, who was found to not currently have legal residency in the United States, having previously entered the country on a student visa and was enrolled in a master's program in religious studies, was arrested.
If convicted, Osiribali faces a sentence of up to ten years in prison, three years of supervision following release, and a fine of up to 250,000 dollars.
