PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. — A metro Atlanta doctor has been arrested and charged after a woman claims he groped her during a flight to Maine.

The incident happened on March 17, according to federal court documents recently unsealed by a judge.

The woman was seated next to Dr. Jake Cho, of Peachtree City, on the flight from Atlanta to Portland, Maine.

During the flight, the woman said Cho appeared to fall asleep and “continuously leaned into her seat area.”

That’s when she said that Cho moved his hand “in contact with her thigh and buttocks,” court documents said.

The victim told investigators that they hit turbulence at one point, and Cho appeared to “spasm” and his hand ended up in the woman’s crotch.

Court documents said that’s when Cho allegedly touched her private area through her clothes.

The woman then yelled “Excuse me,” and Cho pulled his hand back, court documents said.

Police interviewed Cho a couple of days later before his scheduled flight back to Atlanta. Cho told them that he flew to Portland “to propose to his girlfriend, who resides in Maine.”

Cho denied touching the victim inappropriately and agreed to take a polygraph test.

During the test, Cho said he fell asleep “and never intended to touch her crotch.”

“Because my glasses were off and it was dark, my hand slipped from her upper thigh to her crotch. As soon as I did this, she instantly exclaimed something loudly which caused me to remove my hand from her leg and sit straight up. I was so embarrassed and did not know what to do so I closed my eyes and tried to go back to sleep,” Cho’s statement said.

Cho has been charged with abusive sexual contact on an aircraft, which has a penalty of up to two years in jail and a fine of $250,000.

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