Latest news with #BlueRidgeRegionalJailAuthority
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Hindustan Times
Who is Estes Carter Thompson III? American Airlines flight attendant jailed for filming girls
Estes Carter Thompson III, a former American Airlines flight attendant, was sentenced to 18 and a half years in prison on July 23 for secretly recording young girls in airplane bathrooms. He will also spend five years under supervised release after release, according to a USA Today report. Estes Carter Thompson III pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography showing a prepubescent child.(Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority / AP File) Thompson, 38, was arrested in January 2024 after a 14-year-old girl found his phone hidden in a bathroom during a September 2023 flight. The phone was set up to record video from under the toilet seat. Investigators later found out Thompson had recorded several other girls between January and August 2023. They also found hundreds of AI-made child abuse images in his iCloud account. Also Read: Vietnam sentences flight attendant for spreading coronavirus American Airlines fired Thompson after the following scandal American Airlines fired Thompson after the following scandal. The company said that Thompson 'did not reflect our airline or our core mission of caring for people,' and said it was fully cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation. Earlier this year, Thompson pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography showing a prepubescent child. US Attorney Leah B. Foley said, 'Mr. Thompson took advantage of his position of trust as a flight attendant to exploit innocent children – directing them to an aircraft bathroom he had set up to record them and then revisiting those videos for his own sexual gratification.' Foley added, 'In so doing, he shattered five children's sense of safety and trust in the world around them, leaving them instead with fear, mistrust, insecurity, and sadness.' How did Estes Carter Thompson III get arrested? The incident that led to his arrest happened on September 2 flight from Charlotte to Boston. A 14-year-old girl got up to use the bathroom in the main cabin. Thompson told her the first-class lavatory was open and walked her there. Before she went in, he said he needed to wash his hands and that the toilet seat was broken. After he left, she noticed red stickers under the lid that read 'INOPERATIVE CATERING EQUIPMENT' and 'REMOVE FROM SERVICE,' with 'SEAT BROKEN' written on one. She also found a phone recording with the flashlight on. She took a photo of the setup and went back to her seat. Thompson then went in and removed the phone. The girl showed the picture to her parents, who then complained to the flight crew and the captain. Prosecutors said, 'When confronted by the minor's father and other flight staff, Thompson locked himself in the lavatory with his iPhone and restored the device to factory settings – wiping all content from the phone.' When the plane landed in Boston, police searched Thompson's phone and luggage. They found 11 of the same red stickers in his bag. A deeper look into his iCloud account showed he had recorded four more girls, ages 7 to 14, on other flights. 'Each of the videos appeared to be taken in a similar fashion, in which Thompson attached his iPhone to a spot above a toilet seat,' prosecutors said. In two of the videos, he saved hundreds of screenshots.
Newsweek
4 days ago
- Newsweek
Flight Attendant Filmed Young Girls in Plane Toilets
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A flight attendant who pleaded guilty to secretly filming young girls in plane toilets has been sentenced to 18-and-a-half years in prison in the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts. Estes Carter Thompson III, 37, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was given sentences for charges of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography, and sentenced by District Judge Julia E. Kobick on Wednesday. Thompson pleaded guilty in March to his charges after filming five young girls in the bathrooms of several American Airlines flights. He also filmed a sixth girl, 'Minor F,' asleep on a plane, according to the government's sentencing memo. His charges over Minor F did not constitute child pornography. Newsweek has contacted American Airlines and Thompson's legal team via email outside of working hours for comment. This undated inmate file photo provided by the Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority shows Estes Carter Thompson III. This undated inmate file photo provided by the Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority shows Estes Carter Thompson III. Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority via AP The Context The government's sentencing memo states that Thompson was caught on September 2, 2023, after 'Minor A' noticed an iPhone partially hidden by red 'Inoperative Catering Equipment' stickers inside of an airplane toilet she had just used. Per the sentencing memo, 'Minor A' took a photo of the phone and reported it to her parents, who took it to the airline staff. Thompson was confronted, and his phone was seized when they landed in Boston. His phone was connected to his iCloud account, which revealed images of Minor A and four other children using airplane bathrooms, the sentencing memo says. No victims in this suit can be named to protect their privacy. A photo of the phone taped to the toilet. A photo of the phone taped to the toilet. US Attorney's Office District of Massachusetts What To Know Thompson was arrested in Virginia in January 2024. The government's sentencing memo against Thompson says there were five sets of videos from 2023 in his iCloud account showing children on different flights using the bathroom. The memo details the psychological impact these videos had on the children. It states: "The victims' parents' descriptions of the ordeals their daughters have faced since learning how they were violated are heart-wrenching. Minor A's parents describe how she is 'not the same child' anymore, and how her trust in adults and men in particular has been eviscerated." The parents of Minor E have said the experience "shattered" them, and that their child is "scared, hyper-aware of her surroundings, and profoundly distrustful of adults," per the memo. According to the memo, Thompson had worked on national airlines since 2011. The prosecution said that Minor A "had the presence of mind well beyond her years to take a photograph of the phone that she noticed taped to the back of the toilet seat." And said that without her action, it had "no doubt" Thomson would have continued his course of conduct. Thompson's legal team had attempted to dismiss the charges in October 2024, stating that the alleged images of a child in a bathroom did not constitute "sexually explicit conduct." What People Are Saying Parents of Minor A victim impact statement: "The joy and innocence that once lit her face have been replaced by distance and caution. She didn't just lose her innocence that day—she lost her sense of the world." Parents of Minor E victim impact statement: "No child, especially during their formative years, should be burdened with such a horrific truth. The innocence she once had has been stolen." What Happens Next Thompson is to serve his sentence at FMC Butner prison in North Carolina. If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual violence, you can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673, or contact the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) helpline via their website
