As per Florida state records, the guy Mike Tyson was recorded hitting on a flight has a history of criminal offenses dating back to 2008.
Melvin Townsend III was accused of extortion, grand theft, robbery, drug possession, and trafficking in stolen property. The 36-year-old was also imprisoned for 20 months in 2009 and again for 15 months in 2019.
Last Thursday, Tyson was seen hitting Townsend aboard a JetBlue aircraft from San Francisco to Miami. Prior to the altercation, the man and his partner were allegedly pestering Tyson for many minutes. The incident has not resulted in any charges being filed, and the man’s lawyer, Matt Morgan, believes Tyson should have alerted an airline steward.
Morgan explained that their encounter was nice at first. At one point, Mr. Tyson grew angered by an excessively enthusiastic fan and began striking him. This incident might have easily been averted by just alerting a flight attendant. He continued that Mr. Tyson, as one of the greatest fighters of all time, should have known better than to use his hands on an overly exuberant fan.
The man also supposedly tossed a bottle of water at Tyson prior to their altercation, albeit he denies doing so. While the guy has not filed charges, Chicago-based attorney Andrew Stoltmann stated that Tyson may have faced criminal charges for the event.
