Iraq War veteran Jim Stanek claims United Airlines employees mistreated him and his service dog during a layover at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. earlier this month, according to a video made by Stanek and posted on YouTube.
Stanek, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), is the co-founder of Paws and Stripes, a non-profit organization that helps match veterans who've been diagnosed with PTSD and/or TBI with service dogs.
Stanek says in his video that two different United Airlines employees kicked his service dog Sarge, and a customer service representative later asked if Stanek was "retarded."
A spokesperson for United told Reduced Mobility Rights reporter Roberto Castiglioni:
"We are reaching out to the customer directly to discuss the events that he described."
Paws and Stripes co-founder Lindsey Stanek confirmed this with Reduced Mobility Rights, saying:
"United Airlines has contacted us, asking what happened and informing us that they have 30 days to look into it."
