COMFORT Emmanson, an air passenger embroiled in a controversial Ibom Air incident, has given a detailed account of the events on board the flight that led to her arrest, arraignment, and eventual discharge by a Lagos court.
In a video shared on her Instagram page on Sunday, Emmanson expressed gratitude to supporters who stood by her during what she described as a “traumatic” ordeal.
Narrating her version of events, the real estate consultant recalled that on August 10, 2025, she boarded a flight from Uyo to Lagos.
She alleged that a disagreement began when a flight attendant, identified as Juliana, insisted she switch off her phone rather than place it in flight mode. According to her, one of her two phones had a faulty power button.
“I showed her the phone and told her the power button was bad. She said I could still switch it off through the settings. With the help of a fellow passenger, I eventually managed to switch off both phones,” she explained.
The incident has continued to generate debates in Nigeria.
Emmanson claimed the altercation escalated upon landing in Lagos when the same crew member stopped her from disembarking.
“When we landed in Lagos, everybody was getting out of the aircraft. I went to pee. Coming outside, everybody had already left. I had to rush, carry my stuff and move to rush out of the aircraft. Going out of the aircraft, this lady, Juliana, stopped me and I asked her, ‘Why did you stop me?’ ‘Why are you stopping me from going out of the aircraft? Everybody has left. So I need to go out.’
“She didn’t say anything to me. She stared at me with a bad eye. I picked up my phone and started recording. That was when she pushed me back inside the aircraft, dragged my wig frontal, tore my clothes and broke my necklace. The pain was unbearable.
“They dragged me outside. My body was out there, and then they videoed me in the process. My body was out. I was looking for where to cover it. All of them, the surroundings like videos, cameras everywhere. I was surprised because I never expected that, like tearing my clothes and videoing everything.”
“My body outside, my naked body outside, plus the pain. No, it was so much for one person to bear. I started asking them, ‘Why would you do that to me?’ Why would you do this to me? And still like video me again and still put it out there,” she recounted.
Emmanson said she reacted out of anger after being assaulted, insisting she did not provoke the attendant.
“God knows I would never poke an elderly woman old enough to be my mother. It was the pain she inflicted on me, dragging my wig and stripping me in public, that made me react.”
The incident quickly spiralled as security officers intervened. Videos that later surfaced online showed Emmanson being dragged off the aircraft with her clothes torn, sparking outrage and ridicule.
“They tore my clothes, exposed my body, and people were taking videos. I felt humiliated. Like, the trauma is so much on me because I cannot even go out freely anymore because my body is out there. Some people even turned it into stickers,” she lamented.
Shortly after her 11-minute-long video, Emmason, in a follow-up statement on her Instagram story, decried the spread of what she described as false narratives.
“There have been lots of narratives being pushed about the incident, even by respected individuals, some claiming my suffering was political. These are all false. I have received constant victimisation and libel. I only wish for redemption and to regain whatever dignity I have left as a woman,” she wrote.
Acknowledging her reactions on board, she added, “I’ve flown with Ibom Air for years and never experienced this. Whatever happened after I was dragged down from the plane came from a place of pain. My swimsuit was clipped below my privates and torn.
“Imagine the pain as a woman. I would never lay hands on someone old enough to be my mother if she hadn’t assaulted me first. I apologise about my behaviour, I am not crazy, neither am I wayward. I have never been in such a situation in my life, and I don’t wish it on my enemy,” she wrote.