Sleeping woman 'sexually assaulted on flight by man whose wife was sat next to him

A sleeping woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a male plane passenger whose wife was sat on the other side of him.

Prabhu Ramamoorthy, 34, was charged with aggravated sexual abuse following accusations by a 22-year-old woman in the US.

She woke up to find her shirt and trousers unbuttoned and the man's hand inside her trousers, the Washington Post reported.

Flight attendants told investigators the victim was crying when she reported the incident, 40 minutes before they were due to land in Detroit on a Spirit Airlines flight from Las Vegas.

Ramamoorthy appeared in a Michigan court on Thursday, where he claimed he had done nothing wrong but had discovered the woman sleeping on his lap.

Both Ramamoorthy and his wife both claim they attempted to switch seats when they discovered her sleeping on his lap. The flight attendants deny this happened.

Regarding his wife's defence, judge R. Steven Whalen said: "It seems that she's either colluding with the defendant to cover up his actions or she's completely oblivious to what he did.

"What makes this offence particularly egregious and the defendant even more of a danger to the community is the fact that it took place in an airplane.

"He was brazen enough to do this basically in public - next to his wife - where anyone could see him."

The Indian national has been living in the US on a temporary visa.

His lawyer, Richard O'Neill, told the court: "There have been no allegations from anywhere that his behaviour has ever been inappropriate prior to this incident.

"I have a hard time with some of these allegations but that's what the trial is for."

The trial continues.