A decorated military serviceman who is recently divorced has been indicted on charges of sexually molesting two teenage girls on two separate Alaska Airlines flights in April and June 2023.
James Benecke, 41, a Chief Warrant Officer in the U.S. Army, was taken into custody at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson outside of Anchorage earlier this week and is due to appear in a district court in Seattle later this month charged with two counts of abusive sexual contact while on board an aircraft.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office claims the father of two intentionally touched a 16-year-old girl’s buttocks during a flight from Anchorage to Seattle on April 12. The victim was traveling with her classmates for a competition, but she found herself stuck in the middle seat, sitting next to Benecke.
Prosecutors allege that Benecke first touched the victim’s thigh and then her buttock despite the victim rejecting his advances.
After the flight, the victim told her coach about the ‘creepy man’ she was sat next to and the incident was later reported to police. Investigators identified Benecke through the flight manifest.
Just two months later, Benecke was traveling on another Alaska Airlines flight when he spread his legs into the space of an 18-year-old female who was flying back from her college orientation in Dallas and then placed his hand on her thigh before sliding it up towards her genitals.
The victim, who tried to get help from a flight attendant, said she had to physically climb over Benecke, who was sitting in the aisle seat, because he pretended to be asleep. When she climbed over him, he allegedly grabbed her buttock.
Flight attendants moved to another seat, and law enforcement were waiting to speak to him on arrival in Seattle. Benecke said any contact was accidental.
“Due to the heavy travel schedule of the defendant, the investigation is ongoing and law enforcement is interested in speaking with anyone who may have been seated near to Benecke on an aircraft,” the Attorney’s Office said.
If found guilty, Benecke faces a maximum sentence of two years imprisonment.
