An Indian-origin Delta Airlines pilot was arrested at San Francisco International Airport in connection with a disturbing case involving alleged sex crimes against a child, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office said in an official statement. The accused, 34-year-old Rustom Bhagwagar of Florida, was arrested directly from the aircraft he was co-piloting.
According to officials, detectives from the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Investigation Division began working on the case in April 2025 after receiving a report of child sexual abuse. A Ramey arrest warrant was subsequently issued for Bhagwagar, who was identified during the investigation as a commercial airline pilot.
Authorities learned that Bhagwagar was scheduled to fly into San Francisco International Airport on the evening of Saturday, July 26. The Boeing 757-300 he was co-piloting – Delta Flight 2809 from Minneapolis – landed around 9.35 PM after a delayed second approach due to heavy fog. It was then that officers made their move.
Passengers aboard the flight described the scene as “shocking and unnerving”. According to eyewitnesses, multiple law enforcement agents – including Homeland Security Investigations personnel and individuals identifying as air marshals – boarded the plane moments after it landed.
At least 10 armed officials pushed their way down the aisle and into the cockpit, where they arrested Bhagwagar in front of stunned passengers.
“They stormed the cockpit, cuffed the co-pilot, walked him down the aisle, and ushered him off the plane through the cabin doors between first and coach,” one passenger told The San Francisco Chronicle via email. A second team of officers reportedly returned soon after to collect the co-pilot’s personal belongings. The crew reportedly provided no information at the time, and one of the pilots told passengers he had “no idea what just happened.”
Bhagwagar was later booked into the Martinez Detention Facility on five counts of oral copulation with a child under 10 years of age. He is being held in lieu of $5 million bail.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed that its agents assisted the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office in executing the arrest warrant. A spokesperson noted that this remains an ongoing local investigation being led by the Sheriff’s Office.
Delta Air Lines has not yet commented publicly on the arrest, and a message left with the airline has so far gone unanswered. The case has drawn wide attention due to the shocking nature of the charges and the dramatic arrest on a commercial flight.
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