A former American Airlines flight attendant accused of taping his iPhone to the toilet to record a teenage girl who was using the airplane bathroom on a Boston-bound flight in September is due to appear in a Boston courtroom on Monday.
Estes Carter Thompson III, 36, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was indicted by a federal grand jury in April, on one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography depicting a prepubescent minor, Acting U.S. Attorney Josh Levy said in April.
Parents of girl on Boston flight say attendant put camera in bathroom to record their daughter
Thompson is also alleged to have recordings of four additional minor female passengers — some as young as 7 years old — using bathrooms aboard aircraft he had worked on previously, prosecutors said.
According to the charging documents, on Sept. 2, 2023, while working as a flight attendant onboard an American Airlines flight from Charlotte, North Carolina to Boston, Thompson videorecorded or attempted to video-record a 14-year-old female passenger as she used the airplane bathroom.
The girl, after entering the bathroom, then used her own phone to take a picture of what prosecutors said was a concealed iPhone she found in the bathroom. When the girl returned to her seat, she informed her parents of what she saw and showed them the picture.
The victim’s parents reported the matter to other flight attendants, who notified the flight captain, who in turn notified law enforcement on the ground.
Thompson has been in federal custody since his arrest in January in Lynchburg, Virginia, Levy said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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