GRAPHIC: Passenger allegedly punches United Airlines employee before flight

HOUSTON (KTRK) - Video of an apparent altercation on a United Airlines flight appears to show a passenger repeatedly hitting a flight attendant before a flight to Houston this week.

Naya Jimenez shot the video before her flight took off from San Francisco to Houston just after midnight on Monday.

Jimenez said the man got angry because she asked his wife and then him to move out of her assigned seat.

GRAPHIC WARNING: Video in this story includes content that some may find disturbing.

In the video, it appears the passenger punches the flight attendant repeatedly. Other passengers reach out to stop him, and he backs up.

“They had to bring in a gate attendant to try to talk to both of them,” Jimenez said. “And then, he began slurring his speech a little bit, like, ‘Sir, why are you smiling at me?’ Is the first thing he said.”

United Airlines confirmed staff contacted law enforcement.

That was after Jimenez said the man successfully opened one of the emergency exits at the front of the plane and nearly jumped out of the plane.

“H was about to jump down, and the plane is elevated, right, so he would have jumped apparently two stories to the ground,” Jimenez said. “And the flight attendants just kicked in, and everybody pulled him back to safety.”

It is unclear if the man has been charged in connection to the incident.

Copyright 2023 CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.