Elderly Man Arrested for Sexually Harassing Woman Passenger on Frankfurt-Bengaluru flight

A 52-year-old man was arrested for allegedly sexually harassing a 36-year-old female passenger aboard a Frankfurt-Bengaluru Lufthansa flight, police said on Wednesday. The incident allegedly took place on November 6.

According to police, the woman, who hails from Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh, was inappropriately touched by the elderly man when she was asleep.

The man, seated next to her, allegedly touched her private parts and misbehaved with her while she was asleep.

Afterwards, the woman requested a flight attendant and got her seat changed as the man continued to harass her.

Following the landing in Bengaluru, the woman filed a complaint against him at Kempegowda International Airport Police Station after which a case was registered under section 354 A (Sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code, a senior police officer said.

The man was arrested and produced before the court. He was, however, later released on bail.

In a similar incident earlier this year in September, a man on board a Mumbai-Guwahati IndiGo flight was detained by the Guwahati police after a complaint was received against him from another passenger for alleged sexual harassment.

A woman had accused the man of lifting the armrest and groping her while the cabin lights were dimmed on the late-night flight.

Following the incident, the airline said that a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against the man and he was handed over to the police in Guwahati.

In July 2023, a 47-year-old professor was arrested for allegedly sexually harassing a woman doctor on a Delhi-Mumbai flight. The 24-year-old victim and the accused were seated next to each other on the flight.

In another shocking incident, a passenger allegedly clicked obscene photos of a female cabin crew and a co-passenger on a Delhi-Mumbai Spicejet flight. The incident took place on August 16.

Taking cognisance of the matter, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) issued notices to the Delhi Police, IGI Airport and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) over the incident.

(With PTI inputs)