CHARLOTTE — A Florida man could soon plead guilty to a federal felony after prosecutors say he sexually assaulted a flight attendant onboard a plane headed to Charlotte.
According to the Department of Justice, Gary Sorichetti accepted a plea deal for one count of abusive sexual contact. He signed that plea agreement this month, but still needs to formally accept the deal in front of a judge.
The 74-year-old was arrested in April for the incident that allegedly took place in 2020.
Court records say Sorichetti was on an American Airlines flight from Sarasota, Florida bound for Charlotte back in 2020. While onboard, an FBI agent says he sexually assaulted a flight attendant by touching her inner thigh and crotch area after making several different remarks to her.
According to those court records, Sorichetti was seated next to the flight attendant. At one point, investigators say he told the female flight attendant “Oh, I’m happy and lucky to sit back here with you” and “I love the smell of your perfume.” That flight attendant told her colleague that Sorichetti “was being a bit weird” and “being creepy.”
Later, the court documents say while they were standing and the plane was still boarding, Sorichetti “placed both of his hands on her hips for approximately 3 to 4 seconds.”
When the flight attendant sat down to prepare for takeoff, that’s when prosecutors say he made another move. The victim told the FBI that Sorichetti “stretched his left arm across her legs…” and put his “thumb…on her inner thigh.”
The flight attendant immediately reported what happened to her colleague and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department was called.
The FBI got involved and brought the federal charge against Sorichetti.
Channel 9′s Hunter Sáenz learned Sorichetti could soon formally accept a plea deal, but the details of it are still sealed.
(WATCH BELOW: Charlotte Douglas ranks the best for holiday flight delays, data says)
©2023 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LH3JSJEF3VBLRJLJQESEAG34AM.png)
