A female employee of Air India, India’s flag carrier airline, was allegedly attacked by an intruder at a hotel in the UK’s London earlier this week.
The incident took place on Thursday night at the Radisson Red Hotel at London’s Heathrow.
The attacker was identified and handed over to the police.
The crew member was taken to a hospital and is now on her way back to Mumbai, according to media reports.
An unidentified source told the Times of India that the incident occurred shortly after midnight when the crew members of multiple Air India flights were staying at the property.
“The crew member was sleeping when an intruder attacked her in her room around 1.30 am. Startled, she woke up and screamed for help. He attacked her with a clothes hanger and dragged her on the floor as she tried to escape towards the door,” the source was quoted as saying by the TOI.
“She was badly bruised, and the intruder tried to escape. The police were called in, and she was taken to a hospital. She could not fly back on duty and a friend from the crew stayed back with her,” the source added.
Meanwhile, Air India has requested that the privacy of the crew member involved must be respected, as the matter is currently under investigation by London police.
The airline also confirmed its cooperation with local authorities to ensure that the incident is thoroughly probed.
However, the airline has not officially commented on reports suggesting that the crew member may have been raped.
Emirates episode
In 2014, a thief had attacked three Emirati sisters in a London hotel.
The attacker was identified as Philip Spence.
He was convicted at Southwark Crown Court in October of three counts of attempted murder.
The attack occurred at the Cumberland Hotel in Marble Arch on April 6.
