A 71-year-old man was charged with “inappropriately” touching a sleeping woman on a flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne, Australia.
The case went to Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court in Victoria on Wednesday, September 24, after the incident allegedly took place two days earlier, according to a media release from the Australian Federal Police (AFP).
“The woman reported to airline crew during the flight that a man had allegedly touched her inappropriately and reached inside her clothes while she tried to sleep during a flight on 22 September, 2025,” the release said.
According to police, “Crew members moved the woman to a different seat for the remainder of the flight and alerted the AFP, who met the flight when it landed and interviewed the man, 71, and witnesses.”
“The AFP arrested the man and charged him with one count of act of indecency without consent, contrary to section 60 of the Crimes Act 1900 (ACT),” police said in the release. “The maximum penalty for this [offense] is seven years’ imprisonment.”
The suspect appeared remotely in court on September 24 via video link, and The Sydney Morning Herald reported that he was not required to speak during the proceedings.
In light of the incident, AFP Detective Superintendent Stephen Cook said that police will take any allegation of inappropriate or criminal behavior seriously.
“Every [traveler] on an aircraft should be able to feel safe from harm and should be confident that the AFP always takes action when we receive reports of alleged crime,” Cook said, according to the police release. “As passenger numbers rise for the busy school holiday period, I’d also like to remind passengers that being in the air does not alleviate the consequences of alleged illegal [behavior].”
The case has been postponed until November 20 in order to allow the prosecution more time to compile evidence, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.
