Matilda Omonaiye & Pat Stevens/
Social media personalities VeryDarkMan and Mr Jollof are now under arrest after a violent confrontation inside a United Nigeria Airlines aircraft at Asaba International Airport, prompting the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to initiate moves toward formal sanctions and possible prosecution.
United Nigeria Airlines confirmed that the altercation erupted during the boarding of Flight UN0523 to Lagos on Monday morning.
Crew members intervened immediately, de-escalated the situation and removed both men from the aircraft before handing them over to airport security for investigation.
The airline said the safety of the aircraft and all other passengers was its primary concern.
The incident has since escalated into a regulatory matter.
Michael Achimugu, Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the NCAA, said the conduct of the two men amounted to a serious breach of aviation safety rules and would attract the “full strength of the law”.
Achimugu, who was on a separate flight when he was tagged to the viral video, said he had already directed consumer protection officers to gather details while awaiting the airline’s mandatory incident report.
He condemned both men for behaviour that endangered passengers, crew and the aircraft, noting the irony that they regularly preach against unruly conduct to their millions of followers.
He added that the regulator is also verifying whether every procedural step was followed by the flight crew, warning that “there will be consequences” if the aircraft had transported the men instead of removing them before take-off.
The NCAA has consistently warned that physical violence onboard an aircraft constitutes a criminal offence under civil aviation regulations, carrying penalties that may include prosecution, heavy fines and flight bans.
A formal regulatory statement is expected once all findings are consolidated.
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