A Las Vegas woman yelling, "Let’s go Brandon" was arrested at McCarran International Airport over the weekend after causing a disturbance.
Trouble first arose at a security checkpoint when a passenger confronted Katrina Alspaugh, 51, about not wearing a mask, according to an arrest report obtained by FOX5 Las Vegas.
At one point, Alspaugh reportedly attempted to punch the other person before authorities intervened. She was uncooperative with officers and refused to provide identification, but was later released when the other passenger refused to press charges, the report stated.
Soon after, however, police were alerted to another disturbance involving Alspaugh, who had been removed from an Allegiant Air flight. She was told to leave the airport due to no longer having a ticket but grew "argumentative with officers" and began "creating a disturbance" in the airport, police wrote in the report cited by FOX5 Las Vegas. She responded to threats of arrest by "loudly yelling 'f**k' and 'Let's go, Brandon,' further creating a disturbance and was therefore placed under arrest," the report added.
Alspaugh has had multiple run-ins with the law. In 2002, she was arrested for battery domestic violence; in 2011 for assault; in 2018 for domestic battery; and in 2020 for harassment. Alspaugh faces a misdemeanor charge of public conduct at an airport for the latest disturbance.
The incident comes shortly after Southwest Airlines launched an internal investigation after a pilot reportedly signed off a message to passengers by saying: "Let’s go Brandon" — a phrase that has become popular in the last few months after a reporter interviewing NASCAR driver Brandon Brown claimed a crowd shouting "f**k Joe Biden" could have been cheering "Let’s go, Brandon!"
It was not long before discussions of the incident escalated online, prompting Southwest to respond in a statement saying it "takes pride in providing a welcoming, comfortable, safe and respectful environment for the millions of customers" who fly with the airline.
"Southwest does not condone employees sharing their personal political opinions while on the job, serving our customers," the statement added. "And one employee’s individual perspective should not be interpreted as the viewpoint of Southwest and its collective 54,000 employees."