A deaf pregnant woman said she and her service dog were punched by a man as their Frontier flight was taxiing to a gate at Orlando International Airport Thursday. The man’s family said the situation, which was caught on video, was all a misunderstanding and he was only concerned for his wife’s allergies.
The woman, Hazel Ramirez, said her fiance, Matthew Silva, tackled Timothy Manley after Manley punched her dog Zariel, reports WFTV.
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Ramirez, who is 20 weeks pregnant, told police that after their flight from Colorado Springs arrived in Florida, the fight started when Manley thought the dog took up more space than “it deserved.”
“My fiancรฉ started yelling at the man and said, ‘Don’t you ever touch our dog. Don’t touch a service animal ever,’” she told WFTV. “‘That’s not OK.’”
The viral video of the incident starts after the alleged punch, with Ramirez and Silva expressing their anger through sign language.
Manley’s wife, Petrini Manley, told WFTV they would never intentionally hurt a dog. She said Manley accidentally “swatted” the dog, and could not explain that to Silva.
Petrini also said her son’s video shows Silva was the aggressor, with him kicking her husband.
Manley also told ABC News he wanted to push the dog away because of his wife’s allergies.
“I pushed her away,” Manley said. “I wouldn’t call it a punch.”
Ramirez disagrees, telling WFTV Manley also punched her in the stomach after Silva yelled at him.
“That’s when my fiancรฉ just became furious, because he put his hands on me and the kid and the dog,” Ramirez said.
Ramirez, Silva, Manley and Petrini eventually got off the plane, were the incident continued. Ramirez said Silva was just trying to keep the peace, but Manley’s family said they felt like they were being held hostage.
According to an Orlando Police Department report obtained by ABC News, Manley punched the dog “with a closed fist” and Ramirez told police she “was punched in the stomach by Timothy.” She also claims Manley “touched” her two younger children.
The police report says Silva admitted he tackled Manley to keep him detained until police arrived.
The FBI is now investigating the incident.
“The FBI was contacted and a copy of this reported [sic] is provided to them,” the police report reads. “Hazel does wish to prosecute and will testify in court.”
A FBI spokeswoman at the Tampa Bay field office said the matter is still under investigation.
Photo credit: YouTube/Joshua Manley
