Latest news with #DominicACipolla
The Independent
05-08-2025
- The Independent
Spirit Airlines pilot ‘removed from duty' after being arrested for stalking teenagers, officials say
A Spirit Airlines pilot who was allegedly stalking teenagers was arrested at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and "removed from duty" by the airline. Dominic A Cipolla, 40, has been charged with stalking two teenagers, according to a July 11 criminal complaint. The charges originate in Johnson County, Kansas, and include birthdates for the alleged victims — 12 and 17 years old. Cipolla was arrested by law enforcement at the airport in New Orleans on June 17 in connection to the criminal allegations, according to The Guardian. After he was taken into custody, police took him to jail before transferring him to Johnson County, Kansas, on August 2. He bonded out after posting $12,500 and he is scheduled to return to court on August 12.. According to the Guardian, Cipolla alleged actions with the younger victim and are considered a felony. If convicted, Cipolla could be sentenced to one to three years in prison. The other charges he faces is a misdemeanor, which could land him a fine of up to $2,500 or up to a year in jail. The charges related to Olathe, Kansas, a town in Johnson County. According to the court documents, Cipolla lives in Kansas City, Missouri, which is about 22 miles north of Olathe. However, officials have released few details of his alleged crimes. Spirit Air confirmed to the Guardian that it is "aware of a matter involving a pilot at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport ... which was unrelated to the performance of their job duties." 'The pilot was removed from duty pending our investigation into the matter,' the airline said in its statement. 'And we arranged for another pilot to operate the flight.' According to the Guardian, Cipolla joined Spirit in 2022 and spent time in the U.S. military. Spirit has faced other connections to sex-crime arrests in recent days. One of the airline's passengers — a registered sex offender — was recently arrested for groping a teenage girl sitting next to him. John Daniel Fowler, 65, of Indiana, told police that he had merely been reaching down to help right the thermos of the 17-year-old girl in the next seat after it tipped over. He reportedly tried to talk to the teen, but she didn't want to. A criminal complaint alleges that after falling asleep under a blanket, the teen awoke to find Fowler's hand underneath her blanket rubbing her crotch. Fowler was charged the same day with abusive sexual contact aboard an aircraft. If he's convicted, he faces three years in a federal prison. On top of the charge, prosecutors may push for a 10-year enhancement for having committed a new crime while a registered sex offender.
The Guardian
05-08-2025
- The Guardian
Spirit Airlines pilot ‘removed from duty' after being arrested on stalking charges
A Spirit Airlines pilot has been 'removed from duty' after being arrested at work at New Orleans's international airport on stalking charges out of Kansas, according to officials. Dominic A Cipolla, 40, was charged with stalking two different people in a criminal complaint dated 11 July, records in the Johnson county courthouse in Olathe, Kansas, show. Officials haven't released much information about the charges against Cipolla, but the dates of birth listed in court documents for his alleged victims indicate that they are approximately 12 and 17 years old. Local law enforcement officers arrested Cipolla in connection with that complaint on 17 July while he was working at Louis Armstrong airport in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner, Louisiana. He was held as a fugitive at a local lockup before being transferred to the Johnson county jail on 2 August. He soon posted a $12,500 bond for his release from custody while awaiting the outcome of the charges against him and was tentatively scheduled to make an initial court appearance on 12 August, records show. When asked about Cipolla on Monday, a spokesperson for Spirit – which is based in Florida and known for its low air fare – said in a statement that the company was 'aware of a matter involving a pilot at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport … which was unrelated to the performance of their job duties'. 'The pilot was removed from duty pending our investigation into the matter,' the airline's statement said. 'And we arranged for another pilot to operate the flight.' Records in Cipolla's case show that the charge he faces in connection with the younger of the two alleged victims is considered a severity level 7 person felony in Kansas, which is a crime that can carry about one to three years in prison under the state's laws. The other charge is considered a class A person misdemeanor, which can carry a fine of up to $2,500 or up to a year in county jail. Cipolla is described as a resident of Kansas City, Missouri, in court records. Kansas City is about 22 miles (35km) north of Olathe. Attempts to contact Cipolla were not immediately successful. A profile under his name at a publicly accessible sales and recruiting platform says Cipolla once served in the US military and joined Spirit in 2022 as a first officer after spending the previous three years in the same role at the Texas regional airline Envoy Air.
