Having been the captain on several depo flights before; one about 6 years ago resulted in me be very wary.
What I witnessed on that flight was:
1. depo being fine until about 10 yards from the aircraft on the jetway
2. throwing himself on the floor and screaming
3. being manhandled to rear row of seats horizontally
4. throwing himself onto the aisle floor and pleading with me, the captain, by screaming
5. being 'forced' into the seats by several size 11's on the back of his neck, by officers stamping on him while standing on the seat backs either side of him
6. I was advised that as captain I could decline too accept the depo, but that the cost to xyz would be £xx,xxx
[this was prior to pax boarding]
7. I can say that the cost was never a factor
8. We were not full and the last few rows were able to be made vacant
9. The cabin crew were consulted and agreed
10. As IThink said, it all became quiet when the depo realised that it was going to happen regardless
Nonetheless, for me, that set some boundaries, and I think that the government agencies on that day exceeded the boundaries acceptable on commercial flights and (irrespective of the depo's crimes) infringed the law of the land and the rights of the individual.
On reflection, I wish that I had offloaded the party, but, as the saying goes, 'I learned about xxx from that'.