Thompson, 37, from Charlotte, North Carolina, allegedly directed the girl to a different bathroom under the pretense that the nearest one was out of order.
Upon entering, she discovered multiple stickers indicating the bathroom was out of service and the phone taped in a way that exposed the camera and flash. She took a photo of the setup with her own phone and returned to her seat.
Following her discovery, Thompson reportedly entered the bathroom immediately after the girl and locked himself inside for five minutes before the plane’s descent.
The girl’s father confronted him, and the family reported the incident to the flight crew and captain, who alerted law enforcement upon landing.
Although the flight attendant attempted to wipe his phone clean by restoring it to factory settings, police found evidence of his activities through a search of his suitcase.
They also accessed his iCloud account, which contained videos of four other minor females and AI-generated child abuse images. Additionally, around 40 images of a sleeping unaccompanied child were found on Thompson’s computer.
