"you thought you had the opportunity to assault her."
An Indian national who repeatedly groped a 12-year-old girl on a British Airways flight and later claimed he mistook her for his wife has been jailed for 21 months.
Javed Inamdar assaulted the child during an overnight flight from Mumbai to London Heathrow on December 14, 2024.
The girl woke up around midnight screaming “get the f**k away from me” before alerting cabin crew, Isleworth Crown Court heard.
Inamdar, a father of two from Mumbai, later told a flight attendant he “may have confused the young girl with his wife”. He also claimed he had been asleep when the assault happened.
Despite denying the allegations throughout the trial, a jury found him guilty of one count of assaulting a girl under 13 by touching.
Prosecutors said Inamdar deliberately chose a window seat beside the child and “tested the waters” before touching her.
Judge Simon Davis said: “This is a tragic case for the young girl. You got on that airplane and sat yourself down on the window seat.
“At that stage, you thought you had the opportunity to assault her. You tested the waters by brushing her hand.
“You’re shaking your head but the jury has found their verdict. That was an outrageous thing to do. This country will protect people like this young girl, especially at that young age.
“I have decreased the sentence because of you waiting in this country and not being able to communicate with your wife, which in itself is another tragedy. I consider that as a material factor.”
Inamdar, who is “without status in the UK”, was housed by his employers while on conditional bail during the trial.
Defending, Lee Sergent said: “He comes from a different part of the world in India. He has made some success of his life in India helping his family.
“He has been on bail in this country because his employers have backed him and got him housing in this country. Being on bail in this country has had a greater restriction on his life than a person from this country.
“He has not been able to see his wife or children.
“He has no right to stay in this country and if he was given a suspended sentence, he would be leaving straight away on a plane.”
The court heard Inamdar was arrested after the Boeing 787 Dreamliner landed at Heathrow. He told police he was in a “deep sleep” and “did not remember touching the girl”.
He maintained that he thought the child “was his wife” and suggested he had “fallen asleep cuddling her.”
Prosecutor Richard Burrington read witness statements from passengers who saw the incident unfold.
One witness said: “During the flight, I went to sleep, and I was suddenly woken up by the girl next to me as she was yelling and screaming.
“I was quite startled and I asked what’s wrong – she was speaking to me and her mum.
“I heard her say the man next to her had touched her and had his hand up her top – she kept repeating this. She was completely freaked out – I think she might have been crying.
“The man in the seat next to her started saying he had been asleep, it was a mistake, and he hadn’t realised what he was doing.”
Inamdar told Detective Constable Fear during an interview that he worked for a “fleet management company” and had been planning to fly on to Houston, Texas from Heathrow.
When DC Fear asked, “Don’t be offended by this question, but are you attracted to children sexually?” Inamdar replied: “No, absolutely not, my own daughter is seven years old.
“My whole family, we all have first daughters, as you know, in India, little girls are seen as goddesses, blessings of God.”
He added: “In shipping, I have a very good post, I am a chief officer, everything by the grace of God is doing well in my life.
“I just want to say I’ve not done anything wrong; I had no intention, I have my own family – I’m so nervous, even now, I don’t want anything wrong happening in the future.”
Inamdar, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 21 months in prison.
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