Joseph Daniel Hudek IV, 23, of Tampa, Florida proved once again that you can dress Florida Man up, but you can’t take him out (or knock him out, apparently).
He was arrested Thursday night after causing a disturbance on a Delta flight from Seattle to Beijing.
He was sitting enjoying a beer while flying over the Pacific Ocean northwest of Vancouver Island, when he got up and went to the restroom. He quickly came out, talked to the flight attendant, and went back in.
Two minutes later he came out and suddenly lunged for the exit door. He grabbed the handle and tried to open it.
Lucky for the passengers, this idiot was from Tampa, the armpit of Florida, so his small motor skills were below par, and he was unable to open the contraption.
Two flight attendants seized him, but he invoked his Florida Man powers and shoved them away. The attendants signaled for help, and radioed the pilot.
Hudek punched a flight attendant in the face, and hit at least one passenger in the head with a red dessert wine bottle.
One of the brave flight attendants grabbed two wine bottles and smashed Hudek on his noggin, breaking at least one of the bottles.
The flight attendant noted:
“Hudek did not seem impacted by the breaking of a full liter red wine bottle over his head…”
Again, being from Florida, it’s not like his brain is really an important part of his body.
Instead of passing out, he simply shouted:
“Do you know who I am!?”
A passenger put him in headlock, but Tampa Man broke free.
Finally, several passengers held him down and zip-tied him into submission. He was kicking and screaming still, but they were able to hold him down until the plane landed and Port of Seattle police could arrest him.
One of the passengers, Dustin Jones, told KIRO-TV that he saw Tampa Man being rolled through the terminal in a wheelchair after the plane safely landed. (wgntv.com)
“He started yelling for help,” Jones said. “And so he turned the wheelchair over in the middle of the airport, screaming for people to help him, just being belligerent.”
Hudek was charged with interfering with a flight crew, carrying a possible sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He should remain in custody at least until a detention hearing on July 13.
We see you Tampa Man… keep up the great work.
