A woman aboard a Spirit Airlines flight from Las Vegas to Detroit on Wednesday said a male passenger sexually assaulted her while she slept.
Prabhu Ramamoorthy, a 34-year-old Indian citizen approved to live in the U.S. on a travel visa, was arrested at Detroit Metropolitan Airport and later charged with aggravated sexual abuse, The Detroit News reported.
The 22-year-old woman said she was sleeping in the window seat and awoke to find her pants and shirt unbuttoned, according to the complaint obtained by the Detroit Free Press. She also said that Ramamoorthy was shoving his “fingers in her (genitals) and vigorously moving them.” She said he did not stop until she was fully awake.
Federal prosecutors said that Ramamoorthy did this while he sat between the victim and his wife.
The woman, who “appeared visibly upset and was crying,” immediately reported the incident to the flight attendants, who offered her a different seat, per The Washington Post. Ramamoorthy was arrested once the plane landed.
Ramamoorthy later told an FBI agent that he ”‘might have’ undone (the woman’s) bra while playing with it, and that he had cupped her (clothed) breast.” He also told authorities that he attempted to put his finger in her vagina “but was not successful.”
A spokesperson for Spirit told multiple outlets that the airline has been cooperating with law enforcement.