Hannah Pierson appeared via video-link from New Zealand at the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Friday. Photo / via Instagram
Hannah Pierson appeared via video-link from New Zealand at the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Friday. Photo / via Instagram
A former Instagram glamour model who threatened to blow up a plane en-route to Auckland, after demanding a free glass of wine, is also facing a string of charges after a violent, drunken rampage in 2018 at a posh Melbourne nightclub.
Hannah Lee Pierson is now facing legal consequences on both sides of the Tasman - although she's trying to avoid conviction in both cases.
Last month, the 31-year-old admitted in Christchurch District Court charges of disorderly behaviour and disruptive conduct towards a crew member after she caused a mid-flight ruckus on an Air New Zealand flight between Melbourne and Auckland on November 7.
Last month, the 31-year-old admitted in Christchurch District Court charges of disorderly behaviour and disruptive conduct towards a crew member. Photo / via Instagram
After requesting a glass of wine and being told her ticket didn't cover wine, and that she'd need to buy one from the menu, Pierson called the flight attendant a "b****" and yelled "I don't give f***, get me a f***** wine" before leaving her seat and saying she would "f***** get it myself".
Crew put her in a vacant row, handcuffed her and strapped her to her chair - with one having their arm squeezed hard by Pierson, who also made head movements crew thought were attempts to head-butt one - and who later yelled "get me a f***** wine or I'll blow up the plane".
After pleading guilty, Pierson's lawyer said she intended to apply for a discharge without conviction, saying a conviction would have travel consequences. She was bailed to June 23, when she'll be sentenced.
Since then, Pierson has been back in court - this time the Melbourne Magistrates' Court and via video-link from New Zealand on Friday, when she admitted six charges relating to the May 2018 nightclub incident.
The charges included various assaults, public drunkenness and resisting an emergency services worker, the Daily Mail reported.
Crown Casino's Club 23, where Pierson went on a rampage back in 2018. Photo / Supplied
It was on a boozy night out at Crown Casino's exclusive Club 23 when Pierson became violent and spat on a security guard after she was spotted "highly intoxicated" on the dance floor and refused a request to leave, the court heard.
Flexible handcuffs were then used, but Pierson repeatedly kicked bouncers as she was removed and police were called, who found Pierson passed out in a casino corridor.
The calm was to be brief - when she woke Pierson became verbally aggressive towards officers and was taken to a private area where a paramedic assessed her.
She screamed at police to "do your job properly" and pushed an officer into a window sill, the Daily Mail reported.
She also kicked in a wall, which fell on police, before being handcuffed.
Police prosecutor Acting Sergeant James Carfi described the "unprovoked" attack as a "volatile and violent situation", the Herald Sun reported.
A report given to the court said Pierson could suffer from a non-verbal learning disorder, and that she had post-traumatic stress disorder and had previously been diagnosed with oppositional defiance disorder after a difficult childhood, the Daily Mail reported.
She returned home to New Zealand for mental health treatment, but magistrate Hayley Bate ordered Pierson to "return to the jurisdiction" to serve her punishment.
However, Pierson's lawyer Scott Kaiser said she needed to remain an outpatient at a New Zealand hospital for the next 18 months.
He also asked that a conviction not be imposed as it could affect her job prospects - she wanted to work as a beautician.
Bate told the court she was "not satisfied" Pierson should escape conviction for her "alcohol-fuelled crime", but deferred the case to August to give Pierson's legal team more time to put together a forensic psychiatric report on why the Kiwi shouldn't have to return to Melbourne for punishment.
