Airport security agent jailed for tricking woman into showing breasts

Full body screening: The TSA agent was jailed for abusing the trusting disposition of a guillible traveller. Photo / File

A former Transportation Security Administration agent, who was accused of tricking a traveller into showing her breasts as she went through airport security in Los Angeles, has pleaded "no contest" to false imprisonment.

Johnathon Lomeli entered the plea to the charge and was sentenced to 60 days in jail and two years of probation, California's lawyer general's office announced, according to local reports.

He was also barred from working as a security guard and charged with using fraud or deceit to falsely imprison the woman in June 2019.

According to CNBC, the woman told investigators that Mr Lomeli told her he had to look inside her bra to ensure she wasn't concealing anything from view at LAX security. It is reported the former security agent also had to hold her pants away from her waist for a check.

The woman then accused the man of taking her to a private room for further security screening, lawyers said.

When alone in the elevator heading to the private screening room, the woman said the man told her he could perform the security screening there and ordered her to lift her shirt and show her breasts, then looked down her pants, she said.

Mr Lomeli allegedly then told the woman she was no longer needed to go to the private screening room with him, and added that she had "nice breasts," authorities said.

Screening security measures

In 2012 the introduction of full body scanners at airports led some travellers to complain that the technology was infringing on their personal decency, and that imaging was open for abuse.

And in 2010 a worker at London's Heathrow airport was subjected to disciplinary action after using the scanners to "ogle female colleagues", according to The Sun.

When the technology made it to New Zealand aviation commentator Peter Clark and current advisor criticised the scanners as overly intrusive.

"This now throws in another cost, another delay, another inconvenience to passengers. They're struggling with this in the United States because of the human rights aspect of it.

"I'm 100 per cent for safety and security, but how far do we go? Do we need to walk through the airport naked?"

Earlier body scanners have since been phased out for models which show more figurative and less revealing imagery of travellers.