Man arrested for abusive sexual contact on a plane: Trump 'says it's OK to grab' women

KHOU.com staff | KHOU

Show Caption Hide Caption Man accused of groping woman on plane, says Trump said "it's okay" A man was arrested for allegedly grabbing a woman’s breast on a Southwest Airlines flight, allegedly later telling police that President Donald Trump "says it’s OK to grab women by their private parts." Veuer's Sam Berman has the full story.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to note the charge in the headline and to note that both the man and woman were not drinking or taking sleep aids, according to the affidavit.



A man cited President Donald Trump after he allegedly assaulted a woman during a Southwest flight from Houston to New Mexico on Sunday, according to court documents.

Bruce Alexander, 49, was arrested on an abusive sexual contact charge after Southwest Flight 5421 landed in Albuquerque.

According to an affidavit, when Alexander was placed in handcuffs, he told officers that "the president of the United States says it’s OK to grab women by their private parts."

Alexander is accused of touching a woman's breast while he was sitting behind her on the Southwest flight.

The woman said she felt Alexander's hand move from behind her and grab her right breast. She said she fell asleep about 20 minutes into the flight and not long after, she felt him touch her but assumed it was an accident, according to court documents.

About 30 minutes later, she said she felt Alexander's hand grab the back of her arm and grope around her ribs and then her breast.

The woman then stood up and told Alexander she did not understand how he could think that was OK and he needed to stop. She then asked a flight attendant to re-seat her, and Southwest confirms to USA TODAY the woman was moved to another seat.

Both Alexander and the woman said they had not been drinking or taking any sleep aids, according to the affidavit.

When Alexander was questioned by authorities, he said he could not recall touching the woman. He said he was sitting behind a woman and was asleep for most of the flight.

He has been charged with abusive sexual contact.

"We take protection of our customers very seriously, and safety is at the forefront of everything we do at Southwest," the airline told USA TODAY when reached for comment. "As part of this operating philosophy, Southwest flight attendants are trained in a wide range of sensitive customer issues. When aware of a potentially harmful situation – whether first-hand or reported by someone else – our flight attendants are trained to re-seat customers and notify the pilots to request law enforcement, as appropriate. We cooperate with law enforcement to protect our customers and crews."

Contributing: Leora Arnowitz

Read the full affidavit.