A Seattle man was sentenced Thursday to 18 months in prison for groping a 19‑year‑old woman on an airplane.
In February, a federal jury found Keith Witt, 58, guilty of abusive sexual contact aboard an aircraft. Prosecutors said Witt molested the woman in August 2023 during a flight from Billings, Montana, to Seattle.
“The Western District of Washington is leading the way in holding offenders who prey on victims aboard aircraft accountable,” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd stated in a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. “The office has prosecuted at least 15 of these cases in the last three years, and at least six of these cases have gone to trial before a jury — each resulting in a guilty verdict. We will keep doing this work to get justice for victims and to deter those who mistakenly think such conduct on an aircraft will escape punishment.”
The victim was in the window seat, and Witt was seated next to her.
“Witt engaged the victim in conversation immediately upon boarding,” the news release stated. “The victim testified that he asked a number of personal questions that made her uncomfortable and touched her shoulder and earbuds, invading her space. The victim decided to feign sleep to avoid having to interact further.”
The victim moved as far toward the wall of the plane as she could, the release said. But then she felt Witt’s hand move to her seat.
“Then he touched her thigh and, after pausing, continued to move his hand up to the hem of her shorts towards her genitalia,” the attorney’s office stated. “The victim flinched, and Witt would remove his hand, only to move it slowly back a few moments later.”
The victim opened one eye and noticed that Witt was masturbating. She reported the incident to the flight crew and closed herself in the restroom. She then texted her mother about what happened.
The flight attendants moved Witt to a seat in the back of the plane, and the flight crew alerted authorities at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Seattle man’s defense rejected as prosecutors say victim had ‘no motive to fabricate’
Assistant United States Attorney Rachel Yemini said during closing arguments that the victim’s testimony was corroborated by others on the plane who saw she was upset and crying.
“There is no motive for [the victim] to fabricate the story,” Yemini said. “She suffered the consequences: she had to talk to the flight attendant; she had to talk to the detectives; she had to come to court and describe what happened to her to strangers. She had no motive to fabricate these allegations.”
Witt had testified that any contact was inadvertent as he had fallen asleep, authorities said. But Assistant United States Attorney Brian Wynne said that the testimony was not credible.
“He was testing boundaries, pressing those boundaries,” Wynne said. “He does not want to bring attention to himself; he is trying to do it slowly and methodically. That is evidence of his intent.”
Along with the prison sentence, Witt was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and more than $4,000 in restitution to the victim. Witt will also be on five years of supervised release following prison and is required to register as a sex offender.
Frank Lenzi is the News Director for KIRO Newsradio. Read more of his stories here.
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