:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/William-McKelvy-061125-b5c835bd89df4e858bf9add0e6028560.jpg "Man Said He 'Flirted With This Chick' After Plane Groping. Jurors Said He is Guilty of Abusive Sexual Contact")
NEED TO KNOW
- A jury in Texas convicted William R. McKelvy, 65, of abusive sexual contact after he allegedly groped a woman on a flight from Tulsa to Dallas in 2023
- McKelvy touched the victim four times on her breast and thighs, even after she made it clear the attention was unwelcome, she testified in court
- He later described the incident to police by saying he “flirted with this chick,” and is now facing up to three years in prison
A Texas man is facing up to three years in federal prison for repeatedly groping a woman on a plane.
William R. McKelvy, 65, was traveling on a Southwest flight from Tulsa to Dallas on April 25, 2023 when he started to molest the woman next to him.
This included touching her breast and inner thigh on four occasions despite being told to stop by the victim, according to a copy of the complaint filed in the Northern District of Texas and obtained by PEOPLE.
The victim testified about her ordeal at the trial, according to a news release from the Department of Justice, telling prosecutors that she initially thought that the man had inadvertently touched her and his actions were accidental.
Just a few minutes later, the victim made her feelings clear by forcefully pushing McKelvy away and telling him to keep his hands to himself, she testified.
On the third instances she described feeling trapped as McKelvy again started to touch her, she said in court.
When he went in for the fourth time the victim got loud, screaming: “Get your ******* hand off me, or I will break your ******* hand!”
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Prosecutors said that her response gained the attention of fellow passengers, who notified flight attendants of the situation. The flight attendants then moved McKelvy to the back of the plane and called ahead to have police meet the plane when it arrived at Love Field.
Upon meeting the police, McKelvy said that he had been vaping on the plane, according to prosecutors, and when speaking about his actions with the female passenger, contended he had “flirted with this chick.”
During the trial, McKelvy claimed to have no recollection of the incident because he consumed alcohol and marijuana gummies prior to boarding the plane.
“Sexual assault aboard an aircraft is a federal crime investigated by the FBI,” said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. “It is because of fellow passengers and the flight crew that the defendant was detained and charged for assaulting the victim multiple times.”
The jury deliberated for 30 minutes before returning with a verdict.
McKelvy will be sentenced on Sept. 8.
Read the full article here