A MAN was sentenced to six months’ jail after he molested a flight attendant and later harassed the woman by cornering her in the galley of a Singapore Airlines plane.
The court also ordered Akash Tiwari, a 35-year-old Indian national, to pay compensation of $1,270.95 (US$982.25) yesterday.
He pleaded guilty to one count of molestation and one count of causing distress by his threatening behaviour.
According to court documents, he was on board a Singapore-bound flight from Thailand with four friends on Feb 9 when they turned rowdy.
According to reports, Deputy Public Prosecutor Lynda Lee said they would wave frantically and laugh whenever a female crew member walked past.
Before the flight took off, the victim approached the group to confirm their meals.
When confirming his meal, Tiwari stretched out his arm and brushed against the victim's upper thigh.
The victim told the chief stewardess about the incident and was moved to an aisle away from the offender to serve passengers there instead.
After meals were served, the victim was collecting the trays and pushing the meal cart towards the front of the aircraft.
While the woman pushed the cart with her back facing Tiwari, he deliberately and suddenly leaned out of his aisle and swerved his body towards the victim.
He nudged his elbow onto the victim's buttocks, intending to outrage her modesty.
The DPP said: “She was very upset and told the accused not to touch her. Instead of apologising, he smirked. The victim was even more distressed and repeated to him not to touch her.”
According to The Straits Times, she told the chief stewardess about it, and both women confronted Akash. However, he was not apologetic and insisted that he had done nothing wrong.
At around that time, the captain announced that the plane was preparing for landing, and the victim left for the galley.
Meanwhile, the chief stewardess approached her supervisor and the captain to tell them about the incident. Tiwari followed the victim into the galley, a narrow and confined space. There was no one else there at the time.
He walked up and stood extremely close to the victim, distressing her.
She told him to stay away, but he went even closer to her and cornered her.
According to CNA reports, the victim shouted at him to stay away from her and stop following her, immediately heading for an aisle with Tiwari on her tail.
Passengers in the aisle saw what happened.
Akash finally left her alone when she went to the chief stewardess for help.
By then, the victim was in tears and visibly frightened, and both her hands were shaking.
Akash was arrested after the plane landed in Singapore. – June 23, 2026
