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US pastor arrested for attacking his wife, who was upgraded to first class on flight

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US pastor arrested for attacking his wife, who was upgraded to first class on flight

In a shocking incident, a pastor attacked his wife on a plane after she was upgraded to first class but he was not. He was arrested and faces federal charges, according to a report in the Independent.

On July 2, a group of passengers on Alaska Airlines Flight 275 from Seattle to Anchorage witnessed 75-year-old Roger Allan Holmberg Sr. verbally abuse and hit his wife. The lawsuit, filed on July 3, alleges the couple traveled from their home in Virginia to Alaska to attend a meeting “related to her office.”

According to the report, the couple knew each other for about 20 years before marrying 1.5 years ago after the death of the pastor’s first wife. A passenger, who is not named in the lawsuit, claimed that things started to go wrong shortly after the 3.5-hour flight took off. She was seated in first class near Holmberg’s wife. The pastor, who was traveling in economy class, confronted his wife at her seat in the first of three separate instances, according to the lawsuit.

He said, “How the hell did you get the upgrade?” To which the woman replied that she was “a Gold Point member.” “Don’t talk to me like that,” she added. He approached her again and insisted she check something on his phone before giving her the middle finger and slinking away.

According to the complaint, he returned a third time and attempted to strike his wife before her seatmate intervened and blocked him. He “pushed in front of” his wife’s seatmate “and attempted to swing his arm toward the victim,” the complaint states.

However, the person next to her “bent forward to block the attempted strike, but (Holmberg) appeared to strike the victim’s head with his hand anyway,” the complaint continues. Holmberg’s wife also stated that she once broke a finger during an altercation.

An off-duty police officer sitting next to Holmberg’s wife noticed what was happening and threatened to arrest the pastor if he didn’t stop. “You can’t do that,” the officer told Homberg, adding, “If there were any more incidents, we would handcuff him.” The pastor then remained in his seat for the duration of the flight.

The man was arrested by airport police after landing at 6:41 p.m. His wife claimed he had “abused her before.” She added that her husband was aware that if he hit her, she might have a fit, as she has epilepsy.

When questioned by FBI agents and airport police, Holmberg stated that he and his wife had seen a marriage counselor to resolve their relationship issues. However, the complaint said he blamed his wife for everything. It stated, “(Holmberg) stated (his wife) was often disrespectful to him and had angry outbursts. (She) had grabbed (Holmberg’s) leg in the past while driving, breaking her finger. (Holmberg) also stated (his wife) had grabbed his genitals with such force in the past that (he) was in pain.”

The pastor said he was “upset” over his wife’s upgrade to first class “because he wanted his wife to travel with him and sit next to him.” According to the complaint, Holmberg told investigators he only “patted his wife on the head as he passed by to get her attention” and downplayed the severity of the action. “Although he was upset, he stated he is not a violent person and did not intend to hurt his wife,” it continued.

In particular, Holmberg was charged with assault and, if convicted, could face up to a year in prison.

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