Bozeman man admits assaulting woman passenger on aircraft

Note: This press release has been updated to correctly identify the flight as SkyWest Flight 3789 operating as Delta Connections.

MISSOULA — A Bozeman man accused of assaulting a woman passenger while on a flight from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Bozeman admitted charges today, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

The defendant, Hunter Andrew Dietrich, 32, pleaded guilty to assault onboard an aircraft in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, a misdemeanor, as charged in a superseding information. Dietrich faces a maximum of six months in prison, a $5,000 fine and one year of supervised release.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto presided. The court set sentencing for July 10. Dietrich was released pending further proceedings.

In court documents, the government alleged that on Feb. 11, 2023, SkyWest Flight 3789 operating as Delta Connections traveled from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Bozeman. During the flight, Dietrich, a passenger, disobeyed repeated instructions from the flight crew to behave himself. In addition, Dietrich approached a woman passenger during the flight and touched her body in various places despite the woman passenger telling him to stop.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Zeno B. Baucus is prosecuting the case. The FBI and Bozeman Airport Police conducted the investigation.

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