A 61-year-old Oregon man was taken into custody immediately after his flight landed in Key West on Saturday, following reports that he repeatedly grabbed a fellow passenger mid-flight, though a family member strongly disputes the allegations.
John Gregory Duffy, of Gresham, Oregon, was arrested on May 16, 2026. According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, Duffy was officially charged with one misdemeanor count of Battery-Touch or Strike and was issued a $5,000 bond.
The sheriff’s office reported that the incident occurred while the aircraft was en route to Key West International Airport. An adult female passenger and multiple witnesses stated that Duffy grabbed the victim’s breast.
When the woman attempted to get away from him, investigators say Duffy then grabbed her thigh. Deputies were waiting at the gate and arrested Duffy shortly after the plane landed, transporting him to the Monroe County Jail. Authorities reported that no serious physical injuries occurred.
However, a family member of Duffy who was present on the flight pushed back against the official account in a statement to the Tampa Free Press, calling the published information from the sheriff’s office “inaccurate and misleading.”
“I was personally present as a witness and also spoke directly with multiple individuals referenced as witnesses. At no point was there any evidence presented of inappropriate behavior,” the family member said. “Additionally, your article states or implies that he has been charged, which is false.”
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The family member, who identified Duffy as their stepfather, provided further details regarding the seating arrangement and the timeline of the incident.
“I was seated directly across the aisle and personally witnessed the situation unfold. There was an empty seat between my stepfather and the woman making the accusation. We did not observe any inappropriate behavior,” the family member stated. “If anything, it appeared he may have briefly fallen asleep and leaned toward the empty middle seat.”
The statement also alleged that crucial context regarding the behavior of the accuser’s husband was left out of initial reports.
“What also seems to have been completely omitted from the reporting is the behavior of the woman’s husband,” the family member added. “He was seated separately toward the front of the plane and, after the accusation was made approximately ten minutes before landing, aggressively charged toward the back of the aircraft threatening that he was ‘going to fk up’ my stepfather. That escalation and hostility are highly relevant to the full context of the situation, yet none of it was included.”
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