Thompson had erased his phone by the time the plane landed, prosecutor say.
Still, his iCloud account revealed four other times he had done the same thing, along with over 50 pictures of a 9-year-old unaccompanied minor, including close-ups of her sleeping in her seat. Police also found AI-generated child porn images.
The flight attendant faces up to 30 years in prison for the charges.
The 14-year-old girl’s family sued American Airlines last month, claiming that Thompson was able to erase his phone because it wasn’t confiscated by the crew in time, WBZ reports.
Following his arrest in Lynchburg, Virginia on Thursday, he is expected to remain in custody until his initial appearance in the Western District of Virginia, with a later appearance scheduled in federal court in Boston.
