US: Delta Air Lines pilot held on child sex abuse charges
Following a three-month federal investigation, he faces five counts of oral copulation with a child under 10, according to the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office.
Federal agents and sheriff's deputies stormed the cockpit of the Delta Airlines flight over the weekend and arrested the co-pilot, authorities said, CBS News reported.
Flight 2809 arrived at San Francisco International Airport at about 9:35 pm (local time) Saturday when agents from Homeland Security Investigations and Contra Costa Sheriff's deputies boarded the Boeing 757-300 jet and removed the co-pilot, the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office said, as per CBS News.
The investigation began in April after the Sheriff's Office received a report of sex crimes against a child, the office said. Detectives later learned that Bhagwagar was an airline pilot and was due to fly into SFO on Saturday evening.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security told CBS News Bay Area that HSI agents assisted the sheriff's deputies by getting them airport and plane access.
Delta Air Lines told CBS News that it will defer comment to the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office and the Sheriff's Office.
"Delta has zero tolerance for unlawful conduct and will fully cooperate with law enforcement," a spokesperson said.
"We are appalled by reports of the charges related to the arrest, and the individual in question has been suspended pending an investigation," CBS News reported.
A passenger aboard the flight told CBS News Bay Area that the plane had just arrived at the gate when deputies and federal agents boarded through the door between the coach and first class sections and pushed their way past passengers who were in the aisle retrieving their belongings from the overhead bins.
Bhagwagar is being held at the Martinez Detention Facility on USD 5 million bail, the Sheriff's Office said, as per CBS News.
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