Francisco De Jesus was flying from Seattle-Tacoma Airport (SEA) to Charlotte Douglas North Carolina Airport (CLT) with his 13-year-old daughter in early May 2023 when he noticed his daughter was wearing wings, given to her by flight attendants.
When they arrived in North Carolina, they were greeted by several officials, one of whom introduced himself as the head of security for CLT airport. De Jesus and his daughter were questioned in detail by security, where they were told that flight attendants are trained to look for signs of human trafficking.
American Airlines eventually reached out to De Jesus and issued a statement to King 5 News about the incident. They stated that their frontline team members are trained to navigate a variety of safety issues, including recognizing the potential signs of human trafficking.