Spirit Airlines gate agent suspended after violent altercation caught on video: report

On Friday, The Dallas Morning Newsreported that a gate agent for Spirit Airlines at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport has been suspended after a viral video showed him in a violent altercation with a passenger.

The confrontation happened Thursday, Spirit confirmed, despite the video’s caption dating it to July 11. An airport police report identifies the agent as Emmanuel Sullivan of Grapevine and the woman as Ayriana Davis of Fort Worth," reported Matthew Griffin. "'Our vendor at DFW has suspended the agent. Spirit Airlines does not tolerate violence of any kind, and we are working with local law enforcement to investigate this matter,' the airline wrote in a statement."

The altercation reportedly began when Davis exited from the jetway and screamed at Sullivan that the plane had no seat for her, after which "he told her to get in line to speak to an agent, then took her boarding pass after she cut in line and became uncooperative." The physical fight began when Davis tried to snatch back the boarding pass.

"The video posted to Twitter shows Sullivan yelling at Davis in the airport, telling her not to touch him," said the report. "'You touched me first and then you got in my face,' Sullivan said in the video. 'Don’t ever invade my personal space.' 'Get out of my face!' Davis screamed in response. She later said cameras saw the altercation and that the agent touched her. Davis shoved Sullivan and called him homophobic and racial slurs, then reached out to hit him. Sullivan responded by running at her and hitting her as bystanders intervened."

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"Davis said she went to the hospital after the incident with a fractured left leg, abrasions on her right leg and other minor injuries. Photographs in the police report show a large abrasion on her right leg and swelling on her left leg," said the report. "Davis denied using a racial slur, noting that she is Black. She said her language was because she was in 'defense mode' after Sullivan hit her."

This is not the first time an incident on the budget airline has attracted national attention. In 2019, a Black woman on a Spirit flight was forced to relocate because a white passenger refused to be seated next to her.

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