Passenger, 25, 'groped airline steward after drinking pint of whisky'



A woman teacher groped a Virgin Atlantic steward at 33,000ft and demanded sex after drinking a pint of whisky, a court heard.

Katherine Goldberg grabbed the man's groin during a flight from Johannesburg to Heathrow, it is alleged.

The 25-year-old is accused of sexual assault and being drunk in an aircraft.

In court: Katherine Goldberg, 25, outside Uxbridge Magistrates Court this morning. She was on a flight from South Africa to Heathrow when she assaulted the crew member by grabbing his crotch, it was claimed

Prosecutor Stella Waata said: 'Miss Goldberg was on a flight from South Africa to Heathrow and she was drunk.

'She proceeded to sexually assault one of the crew members by demanding to have sex with him and grabbing his crotch area.

'She was believed to have drunk at least 50 centilitres of whisky.'

Fifty centilitres is equivalent to ten large pub measures of the drink and equates to almost a pint.

Goldberg, who is of South African heritage, is understood to have been returning from visiting relatives when the alleged incident took place on an Airbus A340-600 at 5.30am British time on August 24.

On Tuesday her lawyer, Francis Brennan, told magistrates in Uxbridge, West London that he hoped his client would be let off one of the charges with a caution.

Ms Goldberg, who works in education, is said to have consumed 500ml of whisky on the Virgin flight, Uxbridge Magistrates Court was told

‘It is a serious allegation but there are good reasons why it would be in the public interest for the Crown to deal with her by way of a caution,’ he said.

‘I have told the court that admissions were made in interview and if matters are not dealt with by way of a caution there will be a plea of guilty at the next occasion.’

Goldberg, from Ealing Common, West London, was granted unconditional bail and will appear at the same court next Wednesday.

A spokesman for the airline said: ‘Virgin Atlantic can confirm that the VS602 from Johannesburg was met by police on arrival at Heathrow and a passenger was arrested.’

The allegations come a few weeks after a court heard how a drunk passenger forced an airline pilot to abort a landing at Manchester airport as she fought cabin crew and other passengers.

Lynn Grimes, 41, had a phobia of flying and drank during most of the easyJet flight from Athens last December. She was invited to sit with cabin crew at the rear of the aircraft because they knew of her condition, but as the plane prepared to land she refused to return to her seat. She kicked a steward in the stomach and grabbed a fellow passenger’s hair and scarf.