Man arrested after allegedly sexually assaulting woman on Hawaii to Seattle flight
Jun 23, 2026, 6:54 PM
A Kansas man was arrested after allegedly touching a fellow passenger's thigh. (Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
A Kansas man was taken into custody after he allegedly sexually assaulted a woman on a flight from Hawaii to Seattle.
The 31-year-old was arrested Tuesday morning at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) after the Delta flight from Kona landed, according to federal prosecutors.
Investigators said he reached down and touched the thigh of the 27-year-old woman seated next to him as she tried to sleep during the overnight flight.
When the woman boarded, she found the man sitting in her assigned window seat. Instead of letting her take her seat, he moved to the middle seat, forcing her to climb over him, authorities said.
“With less than two hours to go in the overnight flight, the victim was attempting to sleep with her hands placed between her thighs,” a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s office stated. “[He] reached his hand between her hands and reached down to touch her inner thigh and groin area.”
The woman immediately pressed the flight attendant call button and was moved to a different seat.
Court documents alleged the man had a blanket over his lap during most of the interaction. The victim reported seeing movement under the blanket.
“[He] confirmed he touched the victim during the flight,” the complaint stated. “[He] stated he was watching an in-flight movie, and the female actress in the movie caused him to become sexually aroused.”
He then described to investigators how he touched the woman “in the waistline area and slid his hand along her upper thigh towards her groin and genitals area,” according to the complaint.
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Man also admits to masturbating on Delta flight, complaint states
He also admitted to masturbating on two occasions during the flight. During one of those instances, the woman was still sitting next to him.
“On the second occasion, the victim had moved to another seat after the unwanted touching,” the complaint stated.
The man said he touched the woman so she would move out of the window seat, which he said he wanted so he could masturbate in private.
“In the last few years, the Western District of Washington U.S. Attorney’s Office has charged 13 defendants with abusive sexual contact on aircraft,” the release stated.
Abusive sexual contact aboard an aircraft carries a penalty of up to two years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Frank Lenzi is the News Director for KIRO Newsradio. Read more of his stories here.
