Former Flight Attendant Sentenced for Secretly Filming Girls on Plane
Estes Carter Thompson III, a former American Airlines flight attendant, was recently sentenced to 18 and a half years in prison. This judgment, handed down by U.S. District Judge Julia Kobick in Boston, came after it was discovered that Thompson had been secretly recording young girls in an airplane bathroom. After his release, he will still be under supervised watch for five more years.
The weight of what he did cannot be brushed aside. Judge Kobick described his actions as “appalling,” not just because of the crime itself, but because it stripped away something these children can never fully reclaim—their sense of security, trust, and innocence.
The case began in January 2024, when Thompson was arrested in Lynchburg, Virginia. A 14-year-old girl had discovered a phone taped beneath the lid of a toilet seat on a flight—an intentional setup designed to secretly capture footage. What followed was a painful unraveling of the truth. Authorities later confirmed that Thompson had used this method repeatedly, recording at least five girls between the ages of 7 and 14 over a nine-month period.
In court, Thompson offered an apology, calling his actions “selfish, perverse, and wrong.” But his confession, however remorseful, could not undo the emotional and psychological damage done to the victims.
According to the prosecutors’ sentencing memorandum, Thompson’s choices didn’t just break the law—they broke something in those young girls. The statement said he “robbed five young girls of their innocence and belief in the goodness of the world,” replacing those with fear, mistrust, and emotional insecurity.
He is expected to serve his sentence at FMC Butner in North Carolina. His legal team noted that he plans to undergo treatment specific to sexual offenders, but declined to offer any further comment.
