California man charged with groping two seatmates on flight to Boston

A California man was charged with two counts of abusive sexual contact in an aircraft after he allegedly groped women sitting on either side of him on a redeye flight from Los Angeles to Boston early this morning.

Jairaj Singh Dhillon, 42, of Modesto, CA, who told investigators he was only flying to Boston to transfer to a flight to Philadelphia, is now in federal custody to await a detention hearing tomorrow, the US Attorney's office reports. He said he was flying to Philadelphia because he is a truck driver and had a job to drive a truck from Philadelphia to California.

According to an affidavit by an FBI agent who met JetBlue Flight 988 at its arrival at Logan, the trouble started about 30 minutes after the plane left LA at 9 p.m. PDT.

Dhillon was sitting in a seat on the right side of the aisle, next to a mother caring for an infant in a car seat next to the window. Immediately on the other side of the aisle sat another woman, who in turn sat next to the mother's husband and, next to him, the couple's other child.

According to the affidavit, Dhillon began running his hand up the mother's thigh, reaching her crotch.

Victim 1 hit DHILLON’s hand away, turned sideways in her seat, pressed the flight attendant call-button, and yelled for her husband. Victim 1 called out for her husband several times and stated out loud, “this man just groped me,” while pointing to DHILLON.

The other woman, on the other side of the aisle, got up to let the first woman's husband get to the aisle.

DHILLON then reached out with both hands and simultaneously grabbed Victim 2’s groin and buttocks. Victim 2 immediately hit DHILLON’s hands away. Victim 2 then heard Victim 1 scream that he (DHILLON) had just done that to her (Victim 1) as well. Victim 2 felt that DHILLON was “not all there.” JetBlue crew members moved DHILLON to another seat for the duration of the flight.

During an interview after the flight had landed, the affidavit continues, Dhillon told the FBI agent and Massachusetts state troopers that he did not remember any of this, that he had popped an Ambien about 15 minutes after takeoff to help him sleep, and that "he was sleeping and that the contact would have been accidental:"

When asked how such contact could have been accidental, DHILLON stated that the contact described above could happen if attempting to hug someone.

However, the affidavit states that Dhillon said he did remember a flight attendant asking him to change seats and that he did do that.

The affidavit adds Dhillon also used Trumpian logic to prove that he didn't touch the first woman:

DHILLON also made remarks indicating he was not attracted to Victim 1, suggesting that he would not have desired to touch her because of his lack of attraction.

The US Attorney's office says that, if convicted on the charges of abusive sexual contact while in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, Dhillon would face up to three years in prison, plus a fine of up to $250,000.

Innocent, etc.