Latest news with #JuliaKobick
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Flight Attendant Who Filmed Girls in Airplane Lavatory with Hidden Phone Sentenced to 18.5 Years
A flight attendant accused of taping his phone to the airplane toilet's lid to film young girls has been sentenced to 18 and a half years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Former American Airlines flight attendant Estes Carter Thompson III was arrested and charged with one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography depicting a prepubescent minor in 2024. He was arrested in Lynchburg, Va., in January 2024, and plead guilty to the charges in March. He was sentenced in Boston on Wednesday, July 23. Police alleged he had recordings of a 14-year-old and four other girls ages 7, 9, 11, and 14, that were recorded over a nine-month period, The Associated Press reports. AI-generated child sexual abuse images and more than 50 images of a 9-year-old girl who was flying as an unaccompanied minor were also discovered on his iCloud account, reports. His setup, which involved concealing his iPhone beneath a warning sticker that read "seat broken" on the plane's toilet, was discovered by a 14-year-old girl on a flight bound for Boston on Sept. 2, 2023. She snapped a photo of the setup and showed her father, who confronted Thompson. Boston U.S. District Court Judge Julia Kobick called his behavior "appalling" and said child victims' "innocence has been lost" because of his actions. Thompson apologized in court Wednesday, describing his actions as "selfish, perverse and wrong." Thompson, 37, a resident of Charlotte, N.C., was arrested in 2024 after authorities said a 14-year-old girl on his flight discovered his secret recording setup in the bathroom. 'We take these allegations very seriously. They do not reflect our airline or our core mission of caring for people,' the airline said in a statement at the time, per NBC News. Thompson will serve his sentence at FMC Butner in North Carolina and intends to undergo sex offender-specific treatment, the outlet reports. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. American Airlines still faces a civil lawsuit in Texas from the family of one of Thompson's victims. Paul Llewellyn, whose law firm Lewis & Llewellyn is representing the child's family, told 'We are pleased that the perpetrator has been sentenced to a lengthy prison term so that he can no longer prey on young girls." Llewellyn's statement continued, 'But no family should ever have to endure what these families have gone through.' Read the original article on People
CNN
5 days ago
- CNN
Flight attendant who police say secretly recorded girls in airplane bathroom sentenced to 18.5 years
Aviation news CrimeFacebookTweetLink Follow A flight attendant accused of taping his cell phone to the lid of an airplane toilet to secretly film young girls was sentenced to just under 20 years in prison Wednesday. Former American Airlines flight attendant Estes Carter Thompson III received a sentence of 18.5 years, followed by five years of supervised release. Boston US District Court Judge Julia Kobick called his behavior 'appalling' and said child victims' 'innocence has been lost' because of his actions. Thompson was arrested and charged in January 2024 in Lynchburg, Virginia, after authorities said a 14-year-old girl on his flight discovered his secret recording setup in the lavatory. He was indicted last year on one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child sexual abuse images depicting a prepubescent minor. He apologized in court Wednesday, describing his actions as 'selfish, perverse and wrong.' Police alleged Thompson, of Charlotte, North Carolina, had recordings of four other girls between the ages of 7 and 14 using aircraft lavatories over a 9-month period. In a sentencing memorandum submitted in court, US government attorneys said Thompson 'robbed five young girls of their innocence and belief in the goodness of the world and the people they would encounter in it, instead leaving them with fear, mistrust, insecurity, and sadness.' Thompson, who will serve his sentence at FMC Butner in North Carolina, intends to undergo sex offender-specific treatment, his attorneys said. A lawyer for Thompson said via email Wednesday he wouldn't be commenting.
CNN
5 days ago
- CNN
Flight attendant who police say secretly recorded girls in airplane bathroom sentenced to 18.5 years
A flight attendant accused of taping his cell phone to the lid of an airplane toilet to secretly film young girls was sentenced to just under 20 years in prison Wednesday. Former American Airlines flight attendant Estes Carter Thompson III received a sentence of 18.5 years, followed by five years of supervised release. Boston US District Court Judge Julia Kobick called his behavior 'appalling' and said child victims' 'innocence has been lost' because of his actions. Thompson was arrested and charged in January 2024 in Lynchburg, Virginia, after authorities said a 14-year-old girl on his flight discovered his secret recording setup in the lavatory. He was indicted last year on one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child sexual abuse images depicting a prepubescent minor. He apologized in court Wednesday, describing his actions as 'selfish, perverse and wrong.' Police alleged Thompson, of Charlotte, North Carolina, had recordings of four other girls between the ages of 7 and 14 using aircraft lavatories over a 9-month period. In a sentencing memorandum submitted in court, US government attorneys said Thompson 'robbed five young girls of their innocence and belief in the goodness of the world and the people they would encounter in it, instead leaving them with fear, mistrust, insecurity, and sadness.' Thompson, who will serve his sentence at FMC Butner in North Carolina, intends to undergo sex offender-specific treatment, his attorneys said. A lawyer for Thompson said via email Wednesday he wouldn't be commenting.
CNN
5 days ago
- CNN
Flight attendant who police say secretly recorded girls in airplane bathroom sentenced to 18.5 years
A flight attendant accused of taping his cell phone to the lid of an airplane toilet to secretly film young girls was sentenced to just under 20 years in prison Wednesday. Former American Airlines flight attendant Estes Carter Thompson III received a sentence of 18.5 years, followed by five years of supervised release. Boston US District Court Judge Julia Kobick called his behavior 'appalling' and said child victims' 'innocence has been lost' because of his actions. Thompson was arrested and charged in January 2024 in Lynchburg, Virginia, after authorities said a 14-year-old girl on his flight discovered his secret recording setup in the lavatory. He was indicted last year on one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child sexual abuse images depicting a prepubescent minor. He apologized in court Wednesday, describing his actions as 'selfish, perverse and wrong.' Police alleged Thompson, of Charlotte, North Carolina, had recordings of four other girls between the ages of 7 and 14 using aircraft lavatories over a 9-month period. In a sentencing memorandum submitted in court, US government attorneys said Thompson 'robbed five young girls of their innocence and belief in the goodness of the world and the people they would encounter in it, instead leaving them with fear, mistrust, insecurity, and sadness.' Thompson, who will serve his sentence at FMC Butner in North Carolina, intends to undergo sex offender-specific treatment, his attorneys said. A lawyer for Thompson said via email Wednesday he wouldn't be commenting.
CBS News
5 days ago
- CBS News
Former flight attendant sentenced to 18.5 years after secretly recording girls in airplane bathrooms
A flight attendant accused of taping his cellphone to the lid of an airplane toilet to secretly film young girls was sentenced to just under 20 years in prison Wednesday. Former American Airlines flight attendant Estes Carter Thompson III received a sentence of 18.5 years, followed by five years of supervised release. Boston U.S. District Court Judge Julia Kobick called his behavior "appalling" and said child victims' "innocence has been lost" because of his actions. Thompson, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was arrested and charged after authorities said a 14-year-old girl on his flight discovered his secret recording setup in the lavatory. According to investigators, the girl got up to use the main cabin lavatory nearest to her seat during a Sept. 2, 2023, flight from Charlotte to Boston but found it was occupied. Thompson told her the first-class lavatory was unoccupied and escorted her there, investigators said. She told investigators that before she entered the bathroom, Thompson told her he needed to wash his hands and that the toilet seat was broken. After he left, the teen entered the bathroom and saw red stickers on the underside of the toilet seat lid, which was in the open position, officials said, with the words written in black ink and all caps, "inoperative catering equipment," "remove from service," and "seat broken." Beneath the stickers, Thompson had concealed his iPhone to record a video, investigators said. The girl used her phone to take a picture of the stickers and concealed iPhone before leaving. American Airlines said following his arrest that Thompson was "immediately withheld from service" and hadn't worked for the airline since the phone was discovered. Thompson pleaded guilty in March to one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of images of child sexual abuse depicting a prepubescent minor. He apologized in court Wednesday, describing his actions as "selfish, perverse and wrong." Police alleged Thompson had recordings of four other girls between the ages of 7 and 14 using aircraft lavatories over a 9-month period. In a sentencing memorandum submitted in court, U.S. government attorneys said Thompson "robbed five young girls of their innocence and belief in the goodness of the world and the people they would encounter in it, instead leaving them with fear, mistrust, insecurity, and sadness." Thompson, who will serve his sentence at FMC Butner in North Carolina, intends to undergo sex offender-specific treatment, his attorneys said. A lawyer for Thompson said via email Wednesday he wouldn't be commenting.
