Australian Man Strikes Plea Deal In Assault On TSA Officer At LAX

LOS ANGELES, CA — A 35-year-old Australian man has agreed to plead guilty to a federal misdemeanor alleging he assaulted a Transportation Security Administration officer at Los Angeles International Airport in March, according to court papers obtained Tuesday.

Thomas Bingham of Melbourne, Australia, is expected to enter a plea to a charge of simple assault on a federal officer, a class A misdemeanor carrying a possible sentence of up to one year behind bars. A date has not yet been set for the plea hearing.

According to papers filed in Los Angeles federal court, an on-duty, uniformed TSA officer was leaving a restroom located in the connector area between Terminals 6 and 7 at LAX on March 15. Bingham — who was on a layover awaiting a flight from Los Angeles to Las Vegas — approached the officer and accused him of taking his backpack and passport, according to the plea agreement.

Bingham allegedly then forcibly assaulted the officer by grabbing his uniform, pulling the officer's TSA identification lanyard off his neck, grabbing and pulling the victim's hair, and pushing him into a glass wall.

The victim later reported experiencing pain in his hand and back and sought medical evaluation.

Airport police arrested Bingham, whose carry-on bag and passport were later located at a restaurant in Terminal 7 that he previously visited, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

City News Service