Indian-origin man charged with sexual assault on plane in US

New York, April 8 (IANS) An Indian-origin man has been charged with sexual assault on a plane, according to US federal officials.

Bhaveshkumar Dahyabhai Shukla is accused of “abusive sexual contact” on a flight from Montana to Texas, Montana federal prosecutor Kurt Alme said in a statement last week.

He said Shukla is to appear in court there on April 17.

He was arrested in New Jersey, where he lives, and agreed to be moved to Montana to face the prosecution.

Court documents seen by IANS said that Shukla, 36, was arrested after the alleged victim’s husband complained to law enforcement when she sent him a text message about the alleged attack.

With the tip-off, he was met at the airport by airport police.

In an affidavit filed in the Montana federal court, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent Chad McNiven said that during the flight from Belgrade, Montana, to Dallas, Texas, on January 26, Shukla allegedly touched the woman inappropriately on two occasions.

McNiven said that the alleged victim told the FBI that he first touched “her thighs, butt, and lower back area” and stopped when she protested.

But when she returned from a trip to the bathroom, he said that according to the complaint recorded by the airport police, she said he “rubbed” her in those areas and her vagina using his coat to try to hide his action.

The alleged assault was corroborated by another passenger, McNiven said.

He said that the alleged victim texted her husband about the assault, and he called the FBI and the airport police.

When confronted by police, Shukla claimed not to speak English, although he had spoken to the woman and her daughter in English, McNiven said.

However, when he was produced in a federal court in New Jersey, where he lives, after his arrest a Gujarati interpreter was used, according to a court document.

--IANS

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