Former soldier sentenced to one year in prison for sexually abusing two teenagers on flights to Seattle

SEATTLE – A former Army soldier has been sentenced to a year in prison for sexually assaulting two teenagers on flights to Seattle.

According to court documents, James Benecke, a 42-year-old former chief warrant officer, touched a 16-year-old girl and an 18-year-old man on flights to Seattle two months apart.

Benecke was charged in July 2023 and pleaded guilty to sexual abuse on board an aircraft in April 2024.

In April 2023, Benecke grabbed the 16-year-old’s buttocks while she was sitting next to him on the flight.

In June 2023, on a flight from Dallas to Seattle, Benecke touched the buttocks and inner thighs of the 18-year-old sitting next to him. According to court documents, the victim’s boyfriend also witnessed the attack and reported it to the crew members along with her.

Benecke was questioned by law enforcement officers when the plane landed in Seattle. About a month later, he was arrested at his base, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska.

As part of the settlement, Benecke admitted that both incidents were intentional “to arouse his sexual excitement.”

This comes amid a rise in sexual assaults on airplanes across the country. From 2019 to 2021, there was a 25% increase in sexual misconduct investigations on airplanes, according to the FBI. In 2018, there were 27 sexual misconduct investigations. In 2022, that number rose to 90 investigations, and in 2023, there were 96.

According to the FBI, most perpetrators in these cases are men. They target women, unaccompanied minors and people who take medication or drink alcohol to relax during the flight. Here are some tips from the FBI on how to protect yourself:

• Always keep the seat armrest down.

• Be wary of “accidental touches.” Some predators test people multiple times to see how they react before attacking them.

• Inform the flight crew of any incidents as soon as possible.