Neel Elsherif, a 37-year-old CEO of three companies, including the luxury vegan leather brand Mela, has filed a lawsuit against American Airlines, claiming the flight crew ignored her complaint after a male passenger masturbated next to her for an hour during an international flight.
According to reports, the incident occurred on May 27 last year when Elsherif was traveling from New York to Milan. She noticed a male co-passenger seated beside her behaving inappropriately.
In the lawsuit filed in Brooklyn Federal Court, Elsherif alleged that the accused consumed several glasses of champagne before he began touching himself over his pants, as per reports.
Reportedly, Elsherif had booked a seat in premium economy, which cost her $3,000 (approximately ₹2.5 lakh). The Arab CEO claims she felt trapped and panicked as the man continued for nearly an hour, with no crew member walking through the cabin during this time.
According to reports, when the man finally stopped, Elsherif immediately notified a flight attendant, expecting appropriate assistance. Instead of help, she was allegedly informed there was "nothing really that [she] could do" except relocate to the coach section. More disturbingly, the flight attendant reportedly dismissed her concerns with the comment, "Men just do stuff like that," even claiming that her own husband bahaved similarly.
In her lawsuit, Elsherif claims American Airlines failed to take any meaningful action, as crew members neither reported the incident nor confronted the offending passenger. She further alleges discrimination, maintaining that her complaints weren't taken seriously because of her Arab heritage.
The legal action against American Airlines cites negligence and infliction of emotional distress. When contacted about the case, an airline representative responded, "American strives to provide a positive experience to everyone who travels with us. We are reviewing the allegations of the complaint."
