17 January 2023 , 10:58
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An Easyjet passenger who grabbed a stewardess by the neck after swigging "three quarters of a bottle of whiskey" has been jailed.
Colin Smith, 51, was flying from Manchester to Malta with his partner when a member of the cabin crew spotted him standing up with the seatbelt sign still on.
The stewardess warned him to sit back down but was met with a ‘vacant stare’ before Smith grabbed her by the neck, Minshull Street Crown Court heard.
He tried to lash out again but in an effort to protect herself the Easyjet worker pushed him back and Smith fell into the laps of two seated passengers before he was restrained.
The stewardess asked his partner if he had any health concerns, to which she replied: “I told him not to drink that whisky”.
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Smith had attacked a flight attendant on an easyJet flight (AFP via Getty Images)The incident unfolded before shocked passengers on March 28 last year, Manchester Evening News reports.
Smith was arrested in the UK when he returned from his holidays a week later on a Jet2 flight.
He admitted he had bought two bottles of Famous Grouse whisky in duty free, and sunk three quarters of one bottle during the journey, describing himself as being ‘nine out of 10 drunk’.
In a victim personal statement read to the court, the stewardess described feeling upset and anxious.
Smith was jailed for six months (MEN Media)She added that she was scared of further assaults in the future.
The court heard that Smith has six previous convictions for nine offences, and was most recently before the courts in May 2018 for an offence of battery.
Defending, Colette Renton said her client’s recollection of the incident was ‘fragmented’ due to his intoxication.
She said his fear of flying contributed to his drinking, and said he was going on a prearranged holiday for his 50th birthday which was a ‘relief’ for him and his partner following recent family bereavements.
“He expresses his remorse and states that he wishes to apologise to the victim for the impact that his behaviour has had upon her,” Ms Renton said.
Smith, of Woodland End, Hull, East Yorkshire, had pleaded guilty to assault and being drunk on an aircraft at an earlier hearing.
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On Monday Judge Tina Landale sentenced him to six months imprisonment.