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Newton man charged with ‘abusive sexual contact’ with minor on flight to Boston

Jonathan Alan Lefman, 46, is accused of sticking his fingers through the seats on a JetBlue flight and groping the buttocks of a 17-year-old girl, according to officials.

February 8, 2025

2 minutes to read

A Newton man has been charged after allegedly groping the buttocks of a 17-year-old girl, a minor, seated in front of him on a JetBlue flight from Puerto Rico to Boston, federal prosecutors announced Friday.

Jonathan Alan Lefman, 46, was arrested Friday and later appeared in a Boston federal court where he was charged with a single count of abusive sexual conduct while in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors say Lefman was accompanied by his wife and four children when the incident allegedly happened onboard a flight departing San Juan on Aug. 30, 2024.

Lefman allegedly carried out the abuse on multiple occasions during the flight and while on the ground waiting to deplane in Boston, according to officials.

“Specifically, it is alleged that Lefman intentionally worked his hand in between and through the area between the back and bottom of the seat directly in front of him, where the minor victim was seated, and touched the minor victim’s buttocks without her permission,” federal prosecutors said in a news release. “On at least one occasion when he did so, the minor victim saw his reflection leaning between the seats in the seatback monitor in front of her.”

On the last occasion, when Lefman allegedly touched her backside, the girl was able to use her smartphone to take a video of his fingers “protruding between the back and bottom” of her seat, prosecutors said.

After exiting the plane at Logan International Airport, the girl waited on the jet bridge, where she took video of Lefman leaving the aircraft, according to officials.

An adult family member of the girl, who was seated in a different row, reported Lefman to a JetBlue supervisor and confronted him about his alleged abuse, according to officials.

The woman also showed Lefman the video of his fingers popping out between the seats, prosecutors said.

Lefman’s lawyer, Paul Cirel, told the Boston Globe his client “is innocent of these allegations.“

“This is a flight in which he was traveling — and sitting with — his wife and four children throughout its duration. We look forward to his complete vindication in court,” Cirel said.

According to an affidavit, when asked by the FBI and State Police on Aug. 30, 2024, if it was his fingers shown in the video, Lefman said, “I don’t know.”

If convicted, Lefman faces up to two years in prison, one year of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.