Woman Arrested After Allegedly Stabbing Officer in the Face With Pen

The injured AFP officer after he was allegedly assaulted with a pen by a woman he was taking off a Jetstar flight at Perth airport. Courtesy of the AFP

A woman has been charged with two counts of causing harm to a Commonwealth public official after she allegedly stabbed Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers who were escorting her off a flight at Perth airport.

The woman has also been charged with obstructing a public official and failing to comply with safety instructions given by cabin crew. The maximum penalty for the assault charge is 13 years’ imprisonment.

Police were called by Jetstar crew when the 34-year-old allegedly became disruptive on a flight from Sydney bound for Western Australia.

Detective Acting Superintendent Peter Brindale told reporters the woman had refused to put her seatbelt on when the flight was coming into land. He did not know whether she was intoxicated.

AFP officers met the aircraft at the gate and escorted the woman from the plane.

Police video shows her attempting to walk away from officers while disembarking and then, when they try to restrain her by grabbing her clothing (which police call an “escort hold”), she can be seen striking an officer’s arm.

When a second officer goes to restrain her, her hand goes to his face. Police allege she was holding a pen she concealed under her clothing and caused serious injuries to that officer.

The injured AFP officer after he was allegedly assaulted with a pen by a woman he was taking off a Jetstar flight at Perth airport. Supplied | AFP

“At this point, a struggle ensued,” Brindale said. “We will allege that the woman struck the second officer several times in the face and the neck with the same pen. We know that she certainly had it in her hand just prior to attacking the officers. We’re still looking into exactly where she got the pen from ... It wasn’t one of the pens supplied by the airline.

“Additional officers [then] assisted in restraining the woman. She continued to violently struggle after that point and swing her fists at officers.”

When the woman was finally restrained, an ambulance was called and the injured officer was transported to hospital. He has since been released, but Brindale said he will need time off to recover.

“One of the wounds is just below his right eye, very, very close to his eye. Police officers are not punching bags, and they should not be subjected to violence. Any passenger who breaks the law by being violent or disruptive will be charged and put before the courts.”

Brindale said the AFP is now seeing this sort of behaviour in airplanes every week, though this case was at the more serious end of the scale.

“It is concerning for us,” he said. “Being in a plane and up in the air adds to the concern of everybody, and we’re doing all we can trying to put the message out there where we will not accept this sort of behaviour anywhere across Australia and particularly Perth airport.”