Image of airline passenger restrained with duct tape goes viral

A passenger alleged to have been drunk and disorderly was reportedly restrained with duct tape on a recent flight originating in Iceland and en route to New York. A photo of the incident, posted on social media, has gone viral.

Recently, a passenger who was reportedly drinking too much became unruly on a flight from Iceland to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. A passenger on the flight took a photo and posted it online. Media reports say the image was posted to Facebook and was also listed under Reddit's "WTF" category with the title, "Glad I landed safely with this lunatic" on Jan. 4. A Reddit user asked the individual who posted the comment on what the back story was to the photo. Reddit user Mezane posted in response: He drank an entire bottle of some duty free alcohol. Then he tried grabbing the women who were sitting next him screaming that we're going to crash. Finally he started chocking a guy next to him and that's when a huge crowd restrained him and tied him up. This was 2 hours into a 6 hour flight. Edit: Did I mention that he was spitting on random people on the plane! The photo also circulated on Tumblr when the passenger sent a photo to a friend in New York who added it to his page. According to the Huffington Post, Gudjon Arngrimsson, the airline's vice president of corporate communications, confirmed to local Icelandic media the passenger was indeed restrained with duct tape with the help of other passengers on Thursday night. Arngrimsson said the man was restrained due to "dangerous" behavior which included threats; he did not comment on the photo posted on social websites, reported local media. Reportedly, the 46-year-old man was taken into custody upon landing in New York and brought to a Long Island hospital. The man's choice of beverage was Topaz, a licorice flavored alcohol, according to Reykjavik Grapevine. In the meantime, the photo appears to still be making the rounds on social media. This is not the first time an incident like this has occurred. Digital Journal reported on a 2008 incident where an air passenger had to be restrained with duct tape. Alcohol was reportedly involved in this incident as well.