Bizarre: United Airlines pilot forces Jewish passenger from the bathroom because "he had stayed in for too long" 

An Orthodox Jewish passenger has filed a federal lawsuit against United Airlines and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, alleging that a pilot forcibly removed him from an airplane bathroom during a flight, exposing him to other passengers, and that he was later detained and mistreated by Customs officers.

Yisroel Liebb of New Jersey claims the incident occurred on a January 28 flight from Tulum, Mexico, to Houston. According to the lawsuit filed Wednesday in Manhattan federal court, Liebb had been in the bathroom at the back of the plane for about 20 minutes, struggling with constipation, when a flight attendant woke his fellow traveler, Jacob Sebbag, from a nap and asked him to check on Liebb. Liebb explained his gastrointestinal issue to Sebbag and assured him he’d be out soon, which Sebbag relayed to the flight attendant.

Roughly 10 minutes later, with Liebb still indisposed, the pilot approached Sebbag and again asked him to check on Liebb, the lawsuit states. The pilot then shouted at Liebb to leave the bathroom immediately. Liebb responded that he was finishing up and would exit momentarily. However, the lawsuit alleges the pilot “became visibly enraged,” broke the lock on the bathroom door, forced it open, and pulled Liebb out with his pants still around his ankles, exposing him to Sebbag, several flight attendants, and nearby passengers.

Liebb says he felt “sexually violated and embarrassed after having been publicly exposed.” The lawsuit further claims that, with Sebbag leading Liebb, the pilot repeatedly pushed the two men back to their seats while threatening to have them arrested and making “scathing remarks about their Judaism, and how ‘Jews act.’”

After the two-hour flight landed in Houston, about a half-dozen U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers boarded the plane and escorted Liebb and Sebbag off in handcuffs. Liebb alleges that when he asked why they were being detained, an officer tightened his handcuffs and said, “This isn’t county or state. We are homeland. You have no rights here.” The two men were paraded through the airport terminal, placed in holding cells, and had their luggage searched, causing them to miss their connecting flight to New York City.

United Airlines booked them on a complimentary flight to New York the next day, but Liebb and Sebbag say they incurred additional expenses for an overnight hotel stay and food during the delay. They also claim the tight handcuffs caused “severe wrist pain” that “persisted for days afterwards.”

Hilton Beckham, CBP’s assistant commissioner for public affairs declined further comment due to the ongoing litigation. United Airlines also declined to comment. A message seeking comment was left with an attorney representing Liebb and Sebbag.

The lawsuit accuses United Airlines and the Department of Homeland Security of causing the plaintiffs humiliation, emotional distress, and physical pain. Liebb and Sebbag, both Orthodox Jews, are seeking unspecified damages for the alleged mistreatment.

The Guardian contributed to this article.