Delta Air Flight Diverts After Passenger is Accused of Slapping Female Crew Member’s Bottom Because She Skipped Him During Beverage Service

A routine beverage service on a cross-country Delta Air Lines flight turned into a federal criminal case after a passenger allegedly struck a female flight attendant from behind when she inadvertently passed over him, forcing the aircraft to divert and triggering an FBI investigation that has now resulted in a federal grand jury indictment.

The Delta Air Lines crewmember, identified in court filings as "P.L.L.," told authorities that she had just begun beverage service aboard a May 9 flight from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles when the incident occurred. 

As P.L.L. walked down the aisle taking drink orders, she approached Cody James Maluck, 32, who appeared to be asleep. Not wanting to wake him, she skipped over Maluck and moved on to the next passenger. 

What happened next led to the flight being diverted hundreds of miles off course. "While stopped nearby servicing another passenger with a beverage, P.L.L. felt a slap to her buttocks area with sufficient force to cause her body to move forward," the complaint states. 

"Immediately thereafter, she turned around and observed Maluck raising his hands and stating words to the effect of, 'I didn't do anything.'" 

A second flight attendant working the same cabin confirmed the account. She told police she was serving drinks in her section when she "heard a yell" and "observed P.L.L.'s body move forward as if she had been struck or pushed." The second flight attendant then suspended beverage service to get P.L.L. away from Maluck, after which the lead flight attendant notified the pilot. 

The pilot "determined it was in the best interest of safety and security to divert the aircraft" to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, where officers from the Atlanta Police Department met the flight at the gate and detained Maluck for further questioning. 

The FBI, which holds jurisdiction over crimes committed aboard commercial flights, was then contacted, and a federal air marshal assigned to an FBI unit at the airport interviewed P.L.L., the second flight attendant, and Maluck individually. 

Maluck waived his Miranda rights and agreed to speak with investigators. He told the air marshal that he had been wearing headphones on the plane and "didn't hear anyone ask him if he wanted a beverage." He acknowledged physical contact but disputed the severity, admitting that he "did touch P.L.L.['s] buttocks area but stated he did not slap her buttocks area with enough force to cause her body to move forward." 

His stated reasoning was that he was simply trying to attract the crew member's attention. The complaint states that Maluck said "it was not his intention to harm or disrespect P.L.L., but rather that he was attempting to get her attention." The air marshal advised Maluck “that such conduct was inappropriate and that he should have found another way to gain her attention.”

Maluck was placed under arrest for interference with flight crew members or attendants and transported to the Atlanta City Detention Center. He appeared in court for a preliminary hearing on May 11 and was ordered to be detained pending trial. The federal complaint was also filed that same day but had not been previously reported. 

The case escalated further when Maluck was indicted on June 3 by a federal grand jury in Atlanta. 

Delta Air Lines was unequivocal in its response to the incident. A Delta spokesperson told The Independent: "Delta has zero tolerance for disruptive or unruly behavior on our flights. We will always cooperate with law enforcement to address such conduct and protect our people." Maluck's court-appointed attorney declined to comment.

If convicted, Maluck faces up to 20 years in federal prison. 

The case is the latest in a series of similar incidents involving physical assault of cabin crew. In March, a 58-year-old man flying China Airlines from London to Taiwan was arrested for slapping a flight attendant's bottom as she reprimanded him for vaping in his seat. Earlier this year, former California Highway Patrol captain Dennis Wally Woodbury pleaded guilty to one count of abusive sexual contact within U.S. special maritime and territorial jurisdiction and was sentenced to three years' probation and 100 hours of community service for slapping a male flight attendant's buttocks and exposing himself on a JetBlue flight from Florida to California. 

Flight attendants are classified under federal law as safety-critical crew members. Under 49 U.S.C. § 46504, any interference with or assault upon a member of a flight crew carries severe federal penalties — a legal reality that Maluck is now confronting in full.