MIAMI — An Alabama woman is accused of instigating a midair fight on a plane bound for Atlanta from Puerto Rico, which forced the aircraft to land in Miami, authorities said.
According to Miami-Dade County online booking records, Ebony Shyteria Harper, 31, of Opelika, was arrested on Monday. She faces a felony charge of battery on a person 65 or older, and she was also charged with misdemeanor battery, online records show.
According to an arrest report from the Miami-Dade County Sheriff’s Office, Harper was aboard a Frontier Airlines flight that had left San Juan when she walked to the back of the plane to use the restroom, the Miami Herald reported.
Frontier flight diverted to Miami International after passenger fight, MDSO says https://t.co/NpCycS7nH1
— Miami Herald (@MiamiHerald) March 11, 2026
Deputies said that Harper leaned on a man in the back row, and the man asked her to remove her hand from the passenger’s back, the newspaper reported.
Deputies said Harper then allegedly touched the man on his face. When the man’s wife asked her to stop, Harper allegedly touched the woman’s face, WPLG reported.
The encounter then escalated, with Harper allegedly striking the woman, according to the Herald. A family member of the alleged victim attempted to intervene was also punched several times by Harper, the arrest report stated.
The flight was diverted to Miami International Airport, where Harper was arrested by authorities, the Herald reported.
According to WPLG, public flight tracking data showed the aircraft was delayed at Miami International Airport for nearly three hours.
The aircraft landed at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Airport at about 9:17 p.m. ET on Monday.
Harper was released from theTurner Guilford Knight Correctional Center after posting $1,000 bond early Wednesday, online records show.
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