Eyewitness Reveals What Really Happened Between Ibom Air Passenger and Cabin Crew

A passenger on the Ibom Air Uyo-Lagos flight involving Ms. Comfort Emmanson has given a firsthand account of the confrontation that ended with her forceful removal from the aircraft. David Ogede, a lawyer who was seated near Emmanson, recounted the events during an appearance on Channels TV’s Morning Brief on Thursday.

Ogede said the dispute began before take-off when the first flight attendant instructed passengers to switch off their phones completely, not just put them on airplane mode. After addressing the cabin, the attendant specifically asked Emmanson to turn off her phone. The situation escalated when a second hostess, later seen in the viral video of the incident, repeated the instruction. According to Ogede, Emmanson explained that the power buttons on her phone were not working, prompting the hostess to insist she could still shut it down through the settings menu. Emmanson responded that she could not read the menu or follow the directions.

Ogede said the hostess’s tone quickly became confrontational, telling Emmanson she did not have time for “nonsense” and beginning to spell out the word “General” from the phone’s menu. Ogede and another passenger asked the attendant not to speak to them in that manner. The man beside Ogede then attempted to help Emmanson switch off the phone. During this exchange, Emmanson questioned why she was being embarrassed, to which the hostess allegedly replied with a threat to “deal with” her if she said another word. Ogede said this was the moment Emmanson lost her temper, using language he described as unrepeatably offensive.

The second hostess then walked away and did not return, though some passengers continued urging Emmanson to turn off her phone. Ogede said she kept muttering angrily to herself throughout the flight, complaining about how she was treated, but was not directly insulting anyone.

Upon landing, Ogede said the first hostess and the pilot assisted passengers as they disembarked, and he assumed Emmanson had gone to the toilet. He only learned of her removal later when videos began circulating online.