Woman in Phoenix accused of assaulting TSA agents over juice indicted

Jun 09, 2023

A woman who was arrested at Sky Harbor International Airport after being accused of assaulting TSA employees over a confiscated bottle of apple juice in April has since been indicted by a federal grand jury in Phoenix on three counts of assault and three counts of interference with airport security screening personnel.

The May 17 indictment accuses 19-year-old Ma’Kiah Cherae Coleman of grabbing one Transportation Security Administration agent by the hair and forcing their head down against a table before striking them in the head multiple times on April 25. The indictment also accuses Coleman of striking another agent in the head with her elbow and biting the hair of a third agent before agents subdued her.

Court documents say Coleman told police she was angry that she had to leave security to get food only to go back through security. She said a female TSA agent also hung up her phone while she was on a call with her mother, and she admitted to police that she attacked the agents but "kinda blacked out."

She was initially booked into jail on aggravated assault, two counts of misdemeanor assault, criminal damage and disorderly conduct.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, each count of assault on a federal officer carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Interference with airport security screening personnel has a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison along with a maximum fine of $250,000.