JetBlue Passenger Allegedly Gropes 2 Women Aboard Flight To Boston

Boston, Massachusetts -- A California man has been accused of groping two women passengers while traveling on a cross-country flight.

He was arrested and charged with "two counts of abusive sexual contact while in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States," officials said Wednesday.

Jairaj Singh Dhillon, of Modesto, California, was aboard the overnight JetBlue flight from Los Angeles to Boston on May 31 when he allegedly groped two female passengers seated near him.

The 42-year-old man was in an aisle seat next to a woman who told officials that he touched her thigh and groin area, the New York Post reported. The victim said she was taking care of her infant, seated in a car seat next to the window, when Dhillon inappropriately touched her.

"This man just groped me," she yelled for help.

The second woman was in the aisle seat opposite Dhillon, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

She was wearing noise-canceling headphones and got out of her seat to allow another man to get by. While she was standing in the aisle, Dhillon allegedly reached out with both hands and grabbed her groin and buttocks, according to the second victim's account.

The woman slapped his hands away.

Flight crew members intervened and made Dhillon sit in another section of the plane next to an empty seat for the remainder of the journey. JetBlue operations and security at the Boston airport were notified about the incident. Law enforcement officials in Boston were also informed.

Dhillon was arrested when the flight landed at Boston Logan International Airport on Wednesday morning. He told an FBI agent that he was a truck driver and his final destination was Philadelphia. He had planned to pick up a tractor trailer and drive it from Philadelphia to California.

Dhillon claimed he had no memory of groping the women, Modesto Bee reported. The truck driver said he took an Ambien (a prescription sedative) about 15 minutes after the flight's departure and fell asleep. If any physical contact occurred, it would have been accidental, he told officials.

The husband of one of the women told authorities that Dhillon "seemed off." The other woman said he was "not all there."

"The charge of abusive sexual contact while in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States provides for a sentence of up to three years in prison, up to one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000," the Department of Justice said.