Hilton, 20, surrendered himself to the FBI on Tuesday and appeared in court later that day, said spokesman Thom Mrozek of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Hilton was freed on $100,000 bond and is scheduled to be arraigned March 5.
Hilton and his attorney couldn’t be immediately reached for comment.
If convicted of the federal count, Hilton could face up to 20 years in prison, authorities said.
On the July 31, 2014 flight, a flight attendant told the FBI he thought Hilton appeared to be “under the influence of drugs because of his erratic behavior while walking through the cabin,” court papers said.
“They are…peasants”
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He took a sleeping pill before boarding the flight to Los Angeles, court papers said.
Hilton admitted to calling people “peasants” on the flight, but “Hilton denied having a confrontation with a flight attendant near the start of the flight but acknowledged having other issues with flight attendants,” the affidavit said.
Hilton allegedly told the FBI agent: “I told all of them I could get all of their jobs taken away in less than thirty seconds,” the affidavit said.
When Gates read the federal law to Hilton, he interrupted the FBI agent and stated: “I did intimidate. But, through defense. He came up to me with his nose,” referring to a crew member, the affidavit said.
