A New Jersey resident has been sentenced to more than eight months in prison for sexually assaulting a fellow passenger on a flight from Bozeman, Montana, to Dallas, Texas. U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme announced the sentencing.
Bhaveshkumar Dahyabhai Shukla, 40, pleaded guilty in July 2025 to one count of abusive sexual contact within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States. Shukla is an Indian citizen and will likely be deported to India after completing his sentence.
U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided over the case.
According to court documents, the incident occurred on January 26, 2025, during an American Airlines flight. Shukla was seated next to Jane Doe and her daughter. Jane Doe had placed a coat on her lap due to feeling cold; Shukla also put his coat on his lap and initially appeared to be asleep before using his right hand to rub Jane Doe’s left leg near her hip pocket. Thinking he might be trying to pickpocket her, Jane Doe and her daughter left their seats briefly for the restroom.
Throughout the remainder of the flight, Shukla continued rubbing Jane Doe’s inner and outer thigh. Feeling afraid, she told him firmly to “stop touching me.” Shukla apologized and tried offering something from his bag. He also attempted conversation with Jane Doe’s daughter but was rebuffed by Doe.
When turbulence kept the flight crew seated later in the flight, Shukla persisted in touching Jane Doe's thigh; when she turned away from him out of fear, he then rubbed her lower back and buttocks.
A witness sitting behind them confirmed that inappropriate contact occurred for much of the flight.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zeno Baucus and Brian Lowney prosecuted this case. The investigation involved agents from the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Police.
