Alpharetta Man Ranchhodbhai Lakha gets 6 months for touching plane passenger

ATLANTA -- An Alpharetta man will spend six months in federal prison for inappropriately touching a sleeping Delta Airlines passenger.

”This defendant thought he could get away with taking advantage of a defenseless, sleeping passenger sitting next to him. He was wrong. He will now serve time in a federal prison, United States Attoey Sally Quillian Yates said.

Ranchhodbhai Lakha, 61, was sentenced to six months in prison, followed by a year of supervised release. He is also required to pay a $5,000 fine and register as a sex offender. Lakha pleaded guilty in June.

Last September, the passenger woke up to Lakha, a former hotel owner, touching her. When she removed his hand, he touched her again. The victim reported the incident to a flight attendant.

The FBI led the investigation, with the help of Atlanta police and Federal Air Marshals.