A hidden camera was found in the airplane restroom: in the USA, a flight attendant of American Airlines was arrested
An American Airlines flight attendant accused of attempting to secretly film a teenager in an airplane restroom during a flight from Charlotte to Boston in September has been arrested. Estes Carter Thompson III, 37, faces charges of attempted sexual exploitation of children and possession of child pornography involving minors.
According to acting Massachusetts District Attorney Joshua Levy, Thompson also had records of four other underage girls who had used the toilets on the airplanes where he worked. This information was reported by wistv.com.
"Mr. Thompson allegedly used his position to prey on innocent children, including unaccompanied minors, who were in a vulnerable state aboard the planes where he worked and secretly filmed them," the company said in a press release. "Everyone - especially children - should feel safe as airline passengers, and parents should feel comfortable traveling with their children. Protecting children is a top priority for this agency, and we will vigorously investigate and prosecute individuals who victimize children."
According to court documents, the 14-year-old girl was waiting to use the restroom in the main cabin when Thompson allegedly directed her to the first-class restroom, claiming it was available. He then stated he needed to wash his hands and reported that the toilet seat was broken. After he exited the restroom, the teenager entered and observed red stickers under the toilet seat cover, concealing an iPhone allegedly belonging to Thompson.
She took a photo of it, returned to the cabin, and showed it to her parents.
Her mother promptly searched for the phone, but it had vanished by the time she reached the restroom. Her father recounted confronting the flight attendant.
"I showed him the picture, and his face went pale," he stated in a prior interview with WBTV. "I've never seen someone's face do that before."
Massachusetts State Police and the FBI were summoned to investigate. Upon arrival in Boston, law enforcement discovered that Thompson's iPhone may have been refurbished at a factory. Allegedly, agents found 11 additional stickers.
During a search of his iCloud account, law enforcement purportedly discovered four instances where he had recorded minors using the airplane restroom earlier in the year. The minors were seven, nine, 11, and 14 years old.
Agents also found over 50 photos of a nine-year-old child, including images of her sitting and close-ups of her face while she was asleep.
The iCloud account purportedly contained hundreds of artificially intelligent-generated materials related to child sexual abuse.
Thompson was arrested on January 18, 2024, in Lynchburg, Virginia. He will appear in federal court in Boston.
American Airlines issued the following statement regarding the arrest on Thursday afternoon:
"We take these allegations very seriously. They do not reflect our airline or our core mission of caring for people. We are fully cooperating with law enforcement agencies in the investigation, as nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and crew."
The airline representative also stated that the flight attendant was immediately suspended from work after the incident and has not returned to work since.
Earlier, Travel Wise wrote that delays at most UK airports were shorter on average in 2023 compared to the previous year. The longest delays in the UK were at Aberdeen Airport, where the average delay was 20.70 minutes.
