MARTINEZ – A business airline co-pilot is going through 24 felony fees associated to the sexual abuse of a minor following his arrest over the weekend at San Francisco Worldwide Airport, in response to prosecutors.
Rustom Bhagwagar, 34, of Florida, is ready to be arraigned Wednesday on fees together with partaking in a sexual act with a baby 10 years previous or youthful, oral copulation with a baby, forcible lewd acts upon a baby and aggravated sexual assault of a kid, the Contra Costa County District Legal professional’s Workplace introduced Tuesday.
Prosecutors mentioned a second individual, 45-year-old Jennifer Powell, has additionally been charged in a associated felony criticism, however they didn’t specify how she is related to Bhagwagar or the sufferer. The costs in each instances carry phrases of 15 years to life in state jail.
The alleged crimes occurred between 2018 and 2023 within the county, prosecutors mentioned.
Detectives opened an investigation in April after receiving a report of intercourse crimes towards a baby, in response to the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Workplace. The sufferer instructed them she had been abused by the co-pilot a number of occasions per week between the ages of 6 to 10 and that her mom was typically current in the course of the abuse, authorities mentioned.
Authorities arrested Bhagwagar, a co-pilot with Delta Air Traces, after he touched down Saturday night at SFO. Powell was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon.
“Our workplace stands firmly dedicated to defending kids and holding those that trigger hurt accountable,” District Legal professional Diana Becton mentioned in a press release Tuesday.
“Each little one deserves to really feel secure, protected and heard when an injustice like this happens,” Becton mentioned. “By pursuing these instances vigorously, we not solely search justice for victims but in addition work to safeguard our complete group from those that would prey on kids.”
In a press release, Delta Air Traces mentioned the corporate has “zero tolerance for illegal conduct” and vowed to completely cooperate with the investigation.
“We’re appalled,” the corporate mentioned, including that the co-pilot had been suspended pending an investigation.
Bhagwagar stays in custody on the Martinez Detention Facility on a $15 million bond.
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