Three women charged with assaulting security officer at JFK airport

Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Three women from Long Island were federally charged with assaulting an officer at JFK International Airport after being denied entry onto their flight to Puerto Rico.

Jordan Nixon, 21, Janessa Torres, 21 and Johara Zavala, 44, are accused of beating a Delta Airlines security officer on Sept. 22, according to prosecutors.

One woman appeared intoxicated and another refused to wear her facemask, prosecutors said, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday.

The situation escalated after the captain decided the women weren't allowed to board the plane.

As the security officer attempted to tell the women to leave, one allegedly took the officer's radio and hit him with it.

The three women punched and kicked the security officer while he was on the floor, prosecutors said.

A gate worker was also attacked while trying to help the officer. They were taken to the hospital for treatment.

The women were released on a $250,000 bond and were told to limit their travel to New York City and Long Island.

Nixon's lawyer told the Washington Post his client denies the allegations while Torres' and Zavala's lawyers declined to comment.