Flight attendant sentenced for filming girls in airplane bathrooms

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A federal court in Boston sentenced an American Airlines flight attendant to 18 and a half years in prison on Wednesday for secretly recording girls using the restroom on commercial airplanes.

Estes Carter Thompson III, a native of Charlotte, North Carolina, will also serve five years of supervised release following his sentence. Judge Julia Kobick of the Massachusetts District Court called his conduct “appalling” and lamented that his actions had caused “the loss of innocence for the child victims.”

The case began in January 2024 when a 14-year-old passenger found a hidden cell phone in the bathroom of a flight where Thompson was working. The device was recording. Following the discovery, authorities uncovered recordings of at least four other girls, ages 7 to 14, in similar situations on flights over a nine-month period.

Thompson was charged with attempted sexual exploitation of a child and possession of child sexual abuse material. During the hearing, he apologized and called his actions "selfish, evil, and wrong."

In a court filing, federal prosecutors said Thompson “robbed five girls of their innocence and their trust in the goodness of the world,” and highlighted the lasting psychological damage caused by his actions.

The former flight attendant will serve his sentence at the FMC Butner Correctional Facility in North Carolina, where he will undergo sex offender treatment, according to his lawyers. His legal team declined to comment publicly after the sentencing.

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Sources:

• AP News