HE is accused of going berserk during a flight, grabbing a mother and toddler, raging against passengers and cabin crew and spewing profanities.
Yet, Britain's defence attache in Thailand claims he has no recollection of the incident.
Colonel Peter Roberts, 51, told a London court yesterday that he was shocked by the allegations.
He is charged with being drunk and disorderly on a flight from Abu Dhabi to London on Feb 17 last year.
Prosecutors say that the colonel was finally overpowered by passengers and crew who bound his hands and feet with plastic ties until the flight landed and he was arrested.
TOLD TO MOVE
Flight attendant Roseanne Montero told the Isleworth Crown Court in west London that Roberts 'went mad' after she asked him to move from a seat reserved for cabin crew.
'I saw him trying to grab a woman with a small boy about 2 years old and the woman and the small boy looked terrified,' she testified.
When another crew member intervened, Roberts allegedly retorted: 'Do you know who I am? I'm the head of the British government in Thailand and you're treating me like this.'
Roberts then allegedly launched into a tirade against Thailand, its king and Buddha, and threatened to kill crew and passengers who finally restrained him.
'I can't offer any explanation for this at all, I'm absolutely shocked, I honestly don't remember any of that at all,' Roberts told the court yesterday.
'Thailand is my job. I think the king is fantastic. The religion... I just can't understand how I would say things like that.'
Roberts, who apologised profusely in court, said he took a dose of a prescribed anti-depressant, which is not supposed to be consumed with alcohol. He said he had been prescribed the drug, but his dose was doubled after the tsunami due to stress.
Prosecutors said Roberts had apparently drunk up to four whiskies, three airline-size bottles of wine and three glasses of port before the incident.
The Guardian newspaper reported that he had also been drinking wine on his connecting flight from Bangkok to Abu Dhabi and whisky at the airport during the stopover.
The paper also reported that Roberts had broken through three pairs of plastic handcuff straps in a blinding rage before cabin crew and passengers managed to bind his hands and feet with multiple straps.
'He made several threats to kill the people trying to restrain him. It took five people at one stage,' passenger Anil Mohun Kumar told the court.
- AP.
severe LOS blues
He came in for heavy criticism in the UK press at the time.
Updated reports show he had been suffering from and being treated for depression prior to the tsunami.
It appears and seems supported by medical witnesses that he had accidentaly OD on "sexorat" - hope thats the right spelling, bit ironic really.
Had 3 weeks of psychiatric treatment after the incident, seemingly, not voluntarily.
No doubt more to come, but he hasn't denied he acted the way he did, just the reason why.
Tough call.
Updated reports show he had been suffering from and being treated for depression prior to the tsunami.
It appears and seems supported by medical witnesses that he had accidentaly OD on "sexorat" - hope thats the right spelling, bit ironic really.
Had 3 weeks of psychiatric treatment after the incident, seemingly, not voluntarily.
No doubt more to come, but he hasn't denied he acted the way he did, just the reason why.
Tough call.
Talk is cheap