Katie Campos, a former New York state official, alleged that she was groped repeatedly by an unruly, drunken passenger sitting next to her on a flight to Buffalo
A former New York state official alleged on Saturday that she was groped repeatedly by an unruly, drunken passenger sitting next to her on a flight to Buffalo.
Katie Campos made the allegation on her Twitter account and called on the airline on which she flew, United, to better protect female passengers who are victimized by sexual harassers.
Campos, a former education adviser to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, tweeted on Wednesday that the man touched her upper thigh numerous times while he was seated next to her and another woman on a 45-minute flight from Buffalo to Newark this past Tuesday.
‘[I] was sexually harassed on @united flight late last night to BUF,’ Campos tweeted.
‘1 attendant was helpful, and man arrested at gate. Shocked by lack of coordinated response by united to ensure passenger safety. Man kept touching me and others until very end.’
She ended the tweet with the hashtag #dobetter and #unitedAIRLINES.
Campos (seen in the above undated file photo with Hillary Clinton) made the allegation on her Twitter account and called on the airline on which she flew, United, to better protect female passengers who are victimized by sexual harassers
In a follow-up tweet, she wrote: ‘United (and all airlines) should have a policy on how to handle this situation. They need to remove the problem, not the people affected by the problem.’
The man in question, who has been identified as Michael Hildebrand, was arrested by Buffalo-Niagara transit authority police after the plane landed, The Washington Post reported.
The police report corroborated Campos’ allegation that Hildebrand was ‘visibly, highly intoxicated.’
Campos writes that after she complained to a flight attendant, she was allowed to move seats – as was another woman seated in the same row who also was allegedly groped by Hildebrand.
She said that her new seat was just one row behind Hildebrand across the aisle. Even after she moved, he continued to harass her and her fiancée, Campos alleges.
‘He then repeatedly touched my fiance sitting across the aisle from him, and she repeatedly told him to not touch her,’ Campos writes.
Campos, a former education adviser to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, tweeted on Wednesday that the man touched her upper thigh numerous times while he was seated next to her and another woman on a 45-minute flight from Buffalo to Newark this past Tuesday
‘While he was repeatedly touching my fiance, he continued to turn completely around in his seat and stare at me and the other woman.’
As the flight made its final approach toward Buffalo, the harassment continued, she alleges.
‘He continued to grab my fiance and stare at us, and I pushed the call button,’ Campos writes.
‘The flight attendant got on the speaker and said that they cannot help us during take off and landing.
‘Meanwhile, this man continued to touch people around him and stare at and say things to me and the other woman.’
As the flight made its final approach toward Buffalo, the harassment continued, she alleges. ‘He continued to grab my fiance and stare at us, and I pushed the call button,’ Campos writes
‘What would have happened if this was a 2 hour flight?’ Campos writes.
‘Thank goodness he did not become violent and belligerent.’
United Airlines released a statement condemning Hildebrand’s behavior.
‘Our pilot requested that local law enforcement meet the aircraft on arrival in Buffalo, after which authorities removed the customer from the flight,’ a company spokesperson told the Post.
‘We are conducting our own internal review and will support any investigation by local authorities.’
The police report states that after the plane landed in Buffalo, the captain told a police officer that three passengers were ‘assaulted’ by Hildebrand.
The officer approached Hildebrand, who was seated in 26E.
Hildebrand, according to the police report, emanated a ‘strong odor’ of alcohol.
He was handcuffed and taken into police custody.
Officers then interviewed Campos and other women who were on board the flight.
They declined to pursue sexual harassment charges against Hildebrand.
According to the police report, Hildebrand was so intoxicated that he repeatedly told an officer he was on his way to Buffalo – only to be ‘surprised’ when the officer responded he was already there.
Campos is currently the executive director of Teach For America Buffalo.