Momnun Ahmed, 35, was convicted of assault by beating and abusive behaviour after shouting ‘f*** you’ at crew and pushing a flight attendant on a flight from Heathrow to Dhaka
A “drunken” passenger has been fined for assaulting and abusing a flight attendant after being asked not to take his clothes off or film videos, a court has heard. Momnun Ahmed, of east London, shouted “f*** you, I can do anything” at aircraft crew after boarding a flight from Heathrow to Dhaka, in Bangladesh, on July 6 last year.
The 35-year-old had been asked not to “change his clothes” in view of other passengers or take videos on the plane when he became “angry” and started swearing.
Ahmed, who denied the charges, was convicted of one count of assault by beating, and one of behaving in a threatening, abusive, insulting or disorderly manner towards aircraft crew, at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on Monday. He was fined a total of £1,983 for the two offences.
Ahmed was said to have shouted “I’m a British citizen, I can do whatever the f*** I want” after being told not to take videos on the plane, or to change his clothes in his seat, the court heard.
Prosecuting, Saliha Ayub said: “This incident occurred on July 6 2025 at approximately 18.10 hours, on board a BG202 flight, about to depart London Heathrow for Dhaka Bangladesh.
“During boarding procedure, the crew could hear someone screaming and shouting. They found that Mr Ahmed was standing up and shouting at a crew member, Mr Abir.”
The Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight was delayed for more than an hour due to the incident, the court heard. Testifying on Monday, Firoz Abir, a flight attendant with over 30 years of experience, claimed the abuse escalated to the point where he was shoved in the chest.
Both the cabin crew and the arresting police officer concurred that they could detect the smell of alcohol on Ahmed’s breath.
Mr Abir, aided by a Bengali interpreter, stated: “I told him not to do the video and to take his seat, and to support us whilst we were doing the boarding, so that we can leave the flight on time.
“He said, ‘I’m a British citizen, I’m an international passenger, I can do whatever I want’. Then I kindly requested him again to help us board the passengers, and not to do any video, that’s the company policy.
“Then he shouted and said ‘f*** your company, f*** you, I can do anything’.”
Mr Abir later added: “I think he (the defendant) was drunk – a smell was coming from his mouth, he couldn’t stand properly, he was a bit slurry.”
Another member of the cabin crew noted that Ahmed “appeared somewhat intoxicated” before he pushed Mr Abir, and ground staff were summoned to pacify the defendant.
His aggressive behaviour towards the staff persisted, leading to the police being called, the court was informed.
Ahmed, who earns a living as a car salesman, explained he was en route to Bangladesh to fetch his father who had been hospitalised due to heart complications.
“I did not assault anyone, I was not rude, and I would not jeopardise me not flying again in order to collect my dad,” he insisted.
He claimed that he had “hurt Mr Abir’s ego” by stating he “pays his bills”, which led to the flight attendant feigning an assault.
However, the magistrates’ bench dismissed this, finding the flight attendants to be “credible and consistent” witnesses and subsequently found Ahmed guilty on both charges following a summary trial.
After the conviction, it was revealed in court that Ahmed had been released from prison for battery “very shortly” before these offences occurred.
Ahmed, residing at Windsor Terrace, London, was ordered to pay a £600 fine for abusive language, £352 for assault, along with a £381 victim surcharge and £650 prosecution costs.