Jurors in Contra Costa County Superior Court convicted a Florida man and a Bay Area woman Monday in a child sexual abuse case that drew widespread attention last year because the man was a pilot who was escorted from the cockpit and arrested after landing at San Francisco International Airport.

Rustom Bhagwagar, 35, and Jennifer Spitz Powell, 46, were each convicted of 20 counts of sexual abuse on a child under the age of 14. The crimes were committed across five years.

The child testified during the trial, and District Attorney Diana Becton said in a statement that she “showed extraordinary courage by testifying in court and facing the people who used duress to harm her. These verdicts hold both defendants accountable.”

Bhagwagar, who was living in Florida at the time, and Powell, a Walnut Creek resident, each face a maximum sentence of 230 years to life in state prison. They’ll remain in custody at the Martinez Detention Facility until the court sentences them on a future date.

The couple were in a relationship during the period of abuse, which started in 2017 when the girl was 7 years old. The district attorney’s office said that Powell participated with Bhagwagar in the acts of abuse against the child. No details were shared about the child’s connection to Bhagwagar and Powell.

Bhagwagar was working as a commercial pilot for Delta Air Lines at the time of his arrest in July 2025. Law enforcement was waiting for him after he arrived at SFO after an evening flight from Minneapolis. View from the Wing published a video from a passenger that showed officers leaving the cockpit via the aisle of the plane soon after arrival.

If you or someone you know needs help, please call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673 in the U.S.