Mugshot, charges released for woman charged in pilot’s child sex crime case

(KRON) — The mugshot has been released for a female suspect who was arrested in connection to the case of a Delta Airlines pilot who was arrested at San Francisco International Airport and charged with child sex crimes. On Tuesday, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office announced it had arrested 45-year-old Jennifer Powell on charges involving sex crimes against a child.

A day earlier, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office announced that Powell had been charged with a felony complaint.

Powell’s arrest follows the arrest on Sunday of 34-year-old Rustom Bhagwagar, a Delta pilot and Florida resident who was arrested immediately upon landing at SFO Sunday night. Bhagwagar, prosecutors announced Tuesday, will be arraigned on 24 felony charges that include engaging in a sexual act with a child 10 years old or younger, oral copulation with a child, forceable lewd acts upon a child, and aggravated sexual assault of a child.

Authorities said the abuses occurred between 2018 and 2023 in Contra Costa County. Bhagwagar, currently a Florida resident, is being held in the Martinez Detention Center on $15 million bail. Powell is also being held in the Martinez Detention Facility.

Powell, like Bhagwagar, is also facing 24 counts that include oral copulation or sexual penetration with a child 10 years or younger, forcible lewd acts on a child, and aggravated sexual assault of a child, according to court documents obtained by KRON4.

Powell and Bhagwagar, who were arraigned in court Wednesday, are both potentially facing 15 years to life in prison.