New Jersey

JetBlue Pilot Gave 2 Crew Members Drug-Laced Beer, Raped Them in Hotel, Lawsuit Alleges

The lawsuit was filed by two women referred to as Jane Doe # 1, of Riverton, Utah, and Jane Doe # 2, of Fort Worth, Texas

What to Know

  • Two female JetBlue crew members were allegedly drugged and raped by a pilot during a layover in Puerto Rico, according to an NYC lawsuit
  • The alleged incident took place during a layover in Puerto Rico in 2018, ahead of a morning flight to Newark, New Jersey
  • The two women are suing for an “amount to be determined at the time of trial plus interest, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees” and costs

Two female JetBlue crew members were allegedly drugged and raped by one of the airline’s pilots during a layover in Puerto Rico — leaving one of the women with a sexually transmitted disease, according to an explosive lawsuit filed Monday in Brooklyn.

The lawsuit against JetBlue Airways Corporation names two pilots, Eric Johnson and Dan Watson, but only Johnson is accused of raping one of the victims. Watson allegedly drugged a crew member but didn't rape her because she threw up, "which was a turnoff," the suit says.

It was filed by two women referred to as Jane Doe # 1, of Riverton, Utah, and Jane Doe # 2, of Fort Worth, Texas.

According to the lawsuit, after a May 9 flight from Washington, D.C., Jane Doe #1, Jane Doe #2 and a third crew member, who is not identified in the suit, checked into the Intercontinental Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and went to the beach since they had a layover before their flight to Newark the next morning.

The lawsuit alleges that it was at the beach that the women began talking to Johnson and Watson and found out they were both JetBlue pilots.

The lawsuit claims that Johnson handed an opened beer to the women that he pulled from a lunch box and the women shared it.

According to the lawsuit "the beer was laced with a drug, and after that point, the rest of the night became a blur for Doe #1, Doe #2 and the other crew member."

The suit alleges that Jane Doe #1 woke up in a hotel room in a bed with Johnson and the third crew member not involved in the lawsuit. It claims Johnson was raping Jane Doe #1, but she "was unable to react to the situation" because of the alleged drug-laced beer. Her "flashes of memory" include Johnson "having sexual intercourse with the other crew member who was also under the influence of the drugs," according to the lawsuit. That other crew member was also drugged, it says.

She also remembers Johnson saying, "Thank you for making my fantasy come true," according to the lawsuit.

Jane Doe #2 also had trouble remembering everything that happened, allegedly "because of the drugs that she ingested from the beer can” from Johnson and Watson, the lawsuit says. It adds that she did not remember how she left the beach or how she got in the elevator at the hotel, but that she "vomited a number of times throughout the night and was generally sick from the drugs." 

Johnson and Watson allegedly drugged Jane Doe #2 with the intent to rape her but did not because she vomited, "which was a turnoff," the lawsuit claims.

The next morning, all three women felt "groggy and numb," vomited on the flight back to Newark and talked about what they had experienced the night before, according to the suit.

The trio reported their "sexual assault, rape and sex and gender discrimination” to JetBlue at the New York corporate headquarters and were told that the incidents would be investigated, but "no corrective action was ever taken against" Johnson and Watson, the suit claims.

JetBlue said in a statement that it can't comment on pending litigation but "takes allegations of violent or inappropriate behavior very seriously and investigates such claims thoroughly."

"We work to create a respectful workplace for all our crewmembers where they feel welcome and safe," the statement continued.

The lawsuit also includes an explosive allegation about an STD. Jane Doe #1 became fearful she may have contracted one and went to a hospital on May 11, the day she returned home. She reported "she had been drugged and sexually assaulted, and asked to be tested for any drugs,” the lawsuit says.

The hospital reported the allegations; police were contacted and prepared a report, the lawsuit says.

The suit claims that although Jane Doe #1 had been "previously tested and was STD-free, she had contracted the STD human papillomavirus ("HPV"), which she could have only contracted from Defendant Johnson."

It also accuses Johnson of deliberately giving her the disease. 

The two women are suing for an "amount to be determined at the time of trial plus interest, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees" and costs.

Attorney information for Johnson and Watson was not immediately known.

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