The incident occurred on Delta Flight 154, which had departed from Logan Airport in Boston with a delay of more than 3 1/2 hours.

Gosder Cherilus, a 40-year-old resident of Wakefield, Massachusetts and former offensive tackle for the Detroit Lions, appeared at East Boston District Court where he pleaded not guilty to the charges. Cherilus, who was reportedly drunk and dissatisfied with his assigned seat, allegedly approached a 78-year-old woman in another seat and exposed his genitals before urinating on her for approximately 20 seconds.

The shocking behavior by the 6-foot-6, 280-pound suspect caused extreme shock and alarm among the passengers, who feared for their safety. Witnesses onboard tried to intervene by grabbing Cherilus' hands and urging him to return to his seat. The flight crew alerted Delta, who in turn called for assistance with the unruly passenger.

As a result of the incident, Delta Flight 154 made a U-turn and returned to Logan Airport where Massachusetts State Police and Customs and Border Patrol agents boarded the aircraft and confronted Cherilus. Despite verbal commands to cooperate, he became irate and uncooperative, leading to his arrest.

Delta Airlines, in response to the incident, expressed zero tolerance for such behavior and stated that they will fully cooperate with law enforcement. They also apologized to their customers for the travel delay caused by the incident.

In a social media post, Cherilus attributed his erratic behavior to a bad reaction to sleep medication. He apologized to the passengers and flight crew for his actions, claiming that they were not representative of his character.

Cherilus, who played in the NFL for nine seasons with the Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, appeared in a total of 132 games, starting 116 of them. At Boston College, he was an all-Atlantic Coast Conference pick in 2007, protecting quarterback Matt Ryan, who went on to have a successful NFL career.

Cherilus faces serious charges for his actions onboard Delta Flight 154 and will have his day in court to account for his alleged behavior.