A self-described “AI Expert and Celebrity Pickleball Coach” got popped vaping in the bathroom of an SFO-bound flight Monday, and then promptly berated the flight attendant, claiming, “You assaulted me!"

Everyone is aware that smoking on an airplane is a highly illegal federal offense. But one asshole who got caught vaping in the bathroom of an American Airlines flight from Phoenix to SFO on Monday came up with a novel strategy he thinks might get him out of this obviously guilty jam: Record getting busted on your phone, post it to Instagram, claim that you’re an attorney, and then say the flight attendant assaulted you.


Behold the entitled stupidity of Peter Nguyen, who describes himself as an “AI Expert and Celebrity Pickleball Coach,” whom KTVU reports admits he was vaping in the bathroom, but claims he "only took one puff." The attendant sees he is recording the incident and grabs for the phone.

“Did you put your hands on me? She just put her hands on me!,” Nguyen yells at the attendant. "I have a lawyer. I am a lawyer!”

“I have 25,000 followers!” he continues to protest, as if this matters. Upon leaving the restroom, he announces to the passengers writ large, “You assaulted me. This flight attendant assaulted me.”

Interestingly, Nguyen’s Instagram post contains a note that, “To use this video in a commercial player or in broadcasts, please contact [email protected].” Storyful is a platform that basically tries to monetize viral video for creators, so clearly Nguyen is hoping to make a few greasy dollars off the incident.

Mind you, a flight from Phoenix to SFO is just a two-hour flight. He couldn’t go two hours without vaping?

KTVU got a statement from American Airlines saying, "A customer on American Airlines flight 2860 with service from Phoenix (PHX) to San Francisco (SFO) was removed from the aircraft upon arrival at SFO due to disruptive behavior. We thank our customers for their patience and apologize for any inconvenience."

That station also adds, “When the flight landed, Nguyen was met by police. It’s unclear if he faced any punishment.”

Related: Juul Knowingly Sold More Than a Million Contaminated Vape Pods, Fired Exec Claims [SFist]

Image: kobe.pickleball via Instagram