BOSTON (AP) — A former NFL player accused of drunkenly punching one man and urinating on another during a flight from Boston to Dublin has been arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, Massachusetts State Police said Monday.
Gosder Cherilus, a First round pick of the Detroit Lions in 2008 and also played for the Indianapolis Colts and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was arrested early Sunday after the Delta Air Lines flight returned to Logan International Airport.
The police ordered the 40-year-old from Wakefield near Boston to leave the plane, but he “became angry and uncooperative,” police said. He was then arrested for disturbing the peace and disturbing the flight crew.
According to the police report, he appeared drunk when he boarded the plane, allegedly argued with flight crew over his seat and urinated on an elderly passenger an hour into the flight. He then punched another passenger and took his seat before becoming unconscious, the report said.
The Boston Globe reported that Cherilus was arraigned in East Boston District Court on Monday.
“What you have done, as alleged, is quite egregious,” Judge Debra A. DelVecchio told Cherilus.
In a post on social media platform X on Monday, Cherilus apologized to passengers and flight crew, saying he had taken a sleeping pill that he does not normally take and that this was the reason for his bad behavior.
A phone number for Cherilus could not be found. The Globe reports that he and his attorney, Brian Sullivan, did not speak to reporters as they left the courtroom.
In a statement Monday, Delta confirmed that there was an “unruly customer” on the flight and that the other passengers were later flown to Dublin. The airline did not disclose how long the flight was delayed.
“Delta does not tolerate any illegal behavior and will cooperate with law enforcement in this regard,” the company said in a statement. “We apologize to our customers for the delay to their travel.”
