A Newport man charged with placing his hand on a teenage girl's inner thigh, kissing her hand and rubbing her leg during a flight from Florida was allowed to plead to simple assault.
James Brugman, 54, had also been charged with abusive sexual contact but as part of his plea deal with the U.S. Attorney's Office, that goes away.
"The case is being prosecuted by First Assistant United States Attorney Charles C. Calenda and Assistant United States Attorney Julie M. White," according to a media release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Brugman was sitting next to a 16-year-old girl on the flight from Tampa to Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport in November when he sexually abused her, Adam Hopkins, a special agent and federal air marshal with the Federal Air Marshal Service, wrote in an affidavit.
In Tampa, "Brugman boarded the aircraft appearing to stumble and was very loud," Hopkins said. "He was also excessively talkative, often repeating stories and forgetting that he had already told them."
The teen recounted that "Brugman repeatedly questioned her about her age, expressing disbelief that she was sixteen years old and insisting she was older," the affidavit said.
"Despite (the teen) informing him multiple times that she was sixteen, Brugman continued to engage her in sexually charged conversation, asking inappropriate personal questions, including inquiring about her relationship with her father and asking whether she had ever had sex or done 'bad things' like stealing, according to the affidavit.
"He referenced her 'innocence' multiple times, making statements such as 'keep your innocence' or 'stay innocent,' and asked about her sexual history at least three times during the flight," the affidavit said.
Brugman then "made repeated unsolicited and unwanted physical contact" with the teen, Hopkins wrote in the affidavit, pressing his leg against hers and rubbing it against her leg multiple times, grabbing her hand with both of his and kissing it, and at one point touching her upper thigh and telling her, "I didn't like it when (redacted) touched my leg, but I like touching yours."
The teen "explained that these actions caused her to feel scared and uncomfortable throughout the flight," according to the affidavit.
In addition to touching and talking lasciviously to the teen, Brugman pulled out his phone, telling her he was going to show her pictures of his children, but instead "stopped on an image depicting a female wearing a white shirt, short blue plaid skirt, and underwear, taken from a low angle beneath the skirt," Hopkins wrote. "Brugman remained on the image for several seconds and verbally drew attention to it, stating words to the effect of, 'Did you see that? That was one of my girlfriends.'"
Brugman scrolled through his photos again before stopping on one of a "male and female having what appeared to be sexual intercourse," according to the affidavit.
"The photo was very close up and (the teen) could not see any faces, but it showed a naked female with a male positioned above her having intercourse," Hopkins said in the affidavit.
Brugman also offered the teen a ride after they landed and invited her to look him up when she was in Rhode Island, according to the affidavit, "further contributing to her distress."
"After meeting her mother and exiting the airport, (the teen) broke down and cried, subsequently reporting the incident to her mother once they were inside their vehicle," the affidavit said.
A passenger sitting near the teen and Brugman during the flight "described Brugamn as being very loud, 'pretty loose,'and possibly high or drunk, sounding like a 'dirty old man.'" Hopkins wrote.
The witness found Brugman's behavior strange and noted that he was 'constantly babbling to the girl,'" according to the affidavit.
A public defender was appointed to Brugman's case due to his "financial inability ... to retain counsel," according to a court filing.
Calls to Brugman's listed numbers were not returned.
Under the terms of the plea agreement, Brugman faces a maximum sentence of six months in prison, a $5,000 fine and a $25 special assessment.
Brugman's sentencing was scheduled for Jan. 21.
See also:
Sign up for free local newsletters and alerts for the
Newport Patch
Patch.com is the nationwide leader in hyperlocal news.
Visit Patch.com to find your town today.