Copyright New York Post
A British businessman who threatened to “gang-rape” and set fire to a flight attendant has had his jail sentence tripled after an appeal court ruled it was far too lenient. Salman Iftikhar, 37, was traveling first class from London Heathrow to Lahore with his three children and one of his wives in February 2023 when he turned violent mid-air. After downing champagne and helping himself to ice from the on-board bar, crew members told him to return to his seat. “When told to stop, the defendant became irate, and started to film cabin crew with his phone, telling them: “Do not tell me what to do, you b—h,” a court heard. Staff alerted the pilot, and the seat belt signs were turned on, which only aggravated Iftikhar more. According to court documents and footage, Iftikhar began shouting abuse and threatening senior flight attendant Angie Walsh. He told Walsh she would be dragged from her hotel room, “gang-raped”, and set on fire. He also threatened to blow up the hotel floor where the cabin crew were due to stay once they landed in Pakistan. The situation grew so volatile that the captain considered diverting the flight to Turkey. Walsh, a 37-year veteran of the airline, said the incident changed her life “enormously.” “I can’t quite believe that one passenger has had this much of an impact on my, my job, my career, and my life,” she said. “I am a strong, brave, happy stewardess, and loved my job. I am well known within the company. “But I had to take 14 months off work. This incident has broken me.” Police arrested Iftikhar the following month at his home in Iver, Buckinghamshire. He later pleaded guilty to threats to kill and racially aggravated harassment, with the court hearing he had already had six previous convictions for 15 offenses – including common assault and drink-driving. In August this year, he was sentenced to just 15 months behind bars, prompting MP Chris Philip to refer the case to the Attorney General under the UK’s “unduly lenient” sentencing scheme. At the time, one of Iftikhar’s two wives posted a message appearing to defend her disgraced husband, begging people to be “human” and understand the pain behind every person’s story. “Mental health is not a joke. Before judging, try understanding. Be kind,” the 37-year-old supermodel and actress wrote. The popular Pakistani actress has over half a million followers on social media, where she often shares clips of her husband, who lives in the UK with another woman who is the mother of his children. Following a review, the Court of Appeal has increased Iftikhar’s jail time to four years and three months. The Solicitor General said the new sentence better reflected the “gravity and sustained nature” of his threats and the lasting harm caused to Walsh.
