Former American Airlines Flight Attendant Charged with Child Exploitation

Estes Carter Thompson III allegedly recorded young girls in airplane bathrooms, with victims as young as 7 years old.

Estes Carter Thompson III, a former American Airlines flight attendant, has been arrested and charged with sexual exploitation of children and possession of child pornography depicting a prepubescent minor.
The charges stem from an incident in September 2023, when a 14-year-old girl discovered Thompson's hidden iPhone in the airplane bathroom, which he allegedly used to record her.
Further investigation revealed that Thompson had recorded young girls using the plane’s toilet at least four different times, with victims aged 7, 9, 11 and 14.
Thompson's iCloud account also contained more than 50 photos of a 9-year-old girl, including images taken while she was sleeping during a flight, as well as AI-generated child sex abuse material.
Thompson faces up to 30 years in prison if found guilty of attempted sexual exploitation of children and up to 20 years if convicted on the child pornography possession charge.