Estes Carter Thompson III, a former American Airlines flight attendant, has been sentenced to 18 1/2 years in prison after confessing to secretly filming girls as young as seven years old in the airplane toilet. The 37-year-old pleaded guilty to recording five underage girls over a nine-month period and possessing AI-generated child pornography.
During his sentencing, Thompson apologized for his actions, acknowledging that they were “selfish, perverse, and wrong.” Boston U.S. District Court Judge Julia Kobick condemned his behavior as “appalling” and noted that the filmed children had lost their innocence due to his actions.
Federal prosecutors described Thompson’s actions as recording videos of the children’s bodies in a private moment for his own sexual gratification. They emphasized that he had robbed these young girls of their innocence and trust in the goodness of the world.
Thompson was arrested in September 2023 on a Boston-bound flight after a 14-year-old passenger discovered a hidden camera in the airplane toilet. The girl found an iPhone concealed under maintenance stickers and alerted her parents. When confronted by the girl’s father, Thompson retreated to the bathroom and deleted all data from his phone.
Further investigation revealed recordings of four other underage girls, as well as sexual AI-generated images involving children, in Thompson’s possession. He pleaded guilty to charges of attempted sexual exploitation of children and possession of child pornography depicting a prepubescent minor.
In addition to his prison sentence, Thompson will undergo treatment for sex offenders and serve five years of supervised release. American Airlines promptly fired him following the incident, but the company is facing a civil lawsuit from one of the victims’ families.
Attorney Paul Llewellyn, representing the victim’s family, expressed deep concern over Thompson’s exploitation and called for reforms within American Airlines to prevent such incidents from occurring again. The airline owes the families and the public answers and meaningful reforms to ensure the safety and security of passengers.
The disturbing case of Estes Carter Thompson III serves as a stark reminder of the importance of vigilance and accountability in protecting vulnerable individuals from harm.
