A priest has been arrested for allegedly attacking airport staff after refusing to move seats.
A video appears to show Carlos Silva Canessa throwing punches at a female flight attendant and a male security guard.
The 56-year-old is accused of assaulting LATAM Airlines supervisor María Gracia Rivera and security agent Carlos Fabrizio.
The alleged attack took place at Jorge Chavez International Airport in the Peruvian capital Lima last Thursday (12 Apr).
Father Carlos was travelling to Tacna City in southern Peru when he was informed he would have to change seats as he was booked onto a more expensive one.
The change prompted him to allegedly lash out at the two victims.
Three days after the incident, LATAM Airlines said in a statement that they “strongly condemn the aggression suffered by one of our workers on flight LA2067.
“Security personnel – following protocols corresponding to treatment of a disruptive passenger – requested that he disembark the plane.
“Afterwards, when they were already outside the plane, the passenger continued to be violent.
“He proceeded to verbally and physically attack one of our employees who was performing her duties as a supervisor.
“The passenger was reported and detained by the police while our worker was taken to undergo a medical examination.”
The priest’s parish, Our Lady of Fátima in the Lima district of Miraflores, slammed his behaviour in a statement, as reported by Need to Know.
They said: “We publicly apologise to all citizens and parishioners in general, especially to the affected people.
“As a parish, we wish to affirm our commitment to caring for people and respecting the dignity of every human being without exception.
“We will take necessary measures and collaborate with the authorities
“We will assume the consequences of this painful incident and do everything in our power to prevent similar situations taking place in the future.”
The police investigation is ongoing.
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