Indian descent man sentenced for sexually abusing boy on plane
Darpan News Desk IANS, 31 Jan, 2022 12:23 PM
New York, Jan 31 (IANS) A man of Indian descent has been sentenced to 15 months in prison after being found guilty of sexually abusing a 16-year-old boy, who took pictures of the assault on a plane, according to the Justice Department and media reports.
Judge Nancy E. Brasel handed down the sentence to Neeraj Chopra, 41, in a federal court in Minneapolis, acting prosecutor Charles J. Kovats said on Friday.
He was found guilty in July of the incident in April 2019 but sentenced only this month.
According to prosecutors, Chopra had used a blanket to cover his lap and and the right leg of the teen and "began inappropriately touching the victim" while on the flight from Boston to Minneapolis.
"Chopra ignored the victim's multiple requests to stop and continued to inappropriately touch the victim," prosecutors said.
The legal media outlet, Law & Crime, citing court papers reported that the victim was a boy who had asked Chopra to stop the abuse and when it continued took pictures of the assault, which were produced in court as evidence.
The victim's older brother, who was seated in a row in front of him, reported seeing his brother cry and alerted their father who switched seats with the victim, the publication said.
Chopra was met by law enforcement when the plane reached Minneapolis.
The publication reported that Chopra had "admitted to touching the boy inappropriately, but said it was because he was asleep and having a bad dream 'about a family member being killed'".
A Sikh family was found dead at an apartment complex in Ohio where multiple gunshots were fired, reports said on Monday. No suspect has been identified.
In 2016, Aden became the first contestant in Miss Minnesota USA to wear a hijab and burkini, ultimately reaching the pageant's semi-finals, reports CNN.
Nirav Modi is reportedly relying on "new evidence" and will seek to persuade the judge that this constitutes a change of circumstances so that he can be permitted to make another bail application next Wednesday.
Hiteshkumar Chandubhai Patel, who worked as a customer service associate for logistics service provider UBTS between January 2015 and November 2016, was ordered to pay a penalty of 800 Singapore dollars for the offence he committed, The New Paper reported.
