A disruptive passenger forced a flight traveling from London to Los Angeles to be diverted to Salt Lake City, according to the airline.

A passenger’s disruptive behavior aboard a Virgin Atlantic flight from Heathrow to Los Angeles led to an emergency landing in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, the airline confirmed.

William Stephen Hayes, 39, from the UK, was arrested at Salt Lake City airport on suspicion of violent and unruly behavior during an international flight, as per the police report.

Hayes faces charges of interfering with a flight crew and assault by striking, beating, and wounding under U.S. special aircraft jurisdiction, authorities said.

It remains unclear whether Hayes has obtained legal representation. He is currently being held at a Salt Lake County jail, according to police on Wednesday.

Witness accounts revealed that throughout the flight, Hayes was loud, disruptive, and aggressive, making threats and being verbally abusive toward both fellow passengers and the flight crew, according to court documents filed in Utah.

At one point during the flight, Hayes physically assaulted a male passenger sitting ahead of him, grabbing his shirt, attempting to strike him, and choking him, the documents state. Hayes also spat at and tried to bite another passenger, the filings indicate.

With the help of another passenger and crew members, Hayes was restrained and placed in handcuffs. Even while restrained, he continued to struggle and act abusively, attempting to kick the aircraft’s windows, according to court records.

The flight landed in Salt Lake City just after 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, according to FlightAware.com. When the plane arrived, Hayes was still being held down by passengers and crew as law enforcement and U.S. Customs officers met the flight crew at the airport, according to Salt Lake City police.

The investigation into the incident was ongoing as of Wednesday and would be referred to federal prosecutors, police confirmed.

After the plane arrived in Salt Lake City, it resumed its journey to Los Angeles, eventually landing approximately four hours later than originally scheduled, according to Virgin Atlantic.

"The safety and well-being of our passengers and crew is our top priority, and we have zero tolerance for any behavior that jeopardizes this," the airline's statement said. "We always aim to provide our customers with the best possible experience, and our cabin crew are highly trained to manage any disruptions that might affect the comfort of others on board."

This year, the Federal Aviation Administration has received 1,701 reports of unruly passengers, with 582 investigations launched, according to FAA data.

The previous year marked the highest number of unruly passenger incidents on record in the U.S., with 5,981 reports and 1,113 investigations, according to FAA statistics.