Flight instructor, 72, jailed after sexually abusing 15-year-old student during her flying lessons

(Rex Phelps, mugshot, Image credit: Macomb County Jail)

A flight instructor out of Michigan was just sentenced to two years in the federal slammer for sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl to whom he was giving flying lessons.  The 24-month jail sentence for the flight instructor, 72-year-old Rex Phelps of Harrison Township, Michigan, was announced on March 18 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.

Back on October 26, 2023, Phelps pleaded guilty to Abusive Sexual Contact of a Child.  The two-year sentence was the maximum sentence permitted by law.

Background:  While providing flying lessons to the 15-year-old girl, Phelps groomed and inappropriately touched her on several occasions. Phelps also exchanged text messages, including one with a picture of a man and a woman lying on a bed kissing.

Phelps commented on the picture, “Shortly after the shower … without that top.  Maybe more.”   Now included in Ace News Today’s stupid criminals file, Phelps’s abuse of the minor was only uncovered after he mistakenly sent the text message exchange to an unintended recipient, and that recipient contacted police.

“This sentence reaffirms our office’s commitment to protecting the most innocent and vulnerable members of our community – children,” U.S. Attorney Ison said. “This defendant violated the trust that so many had placed in him, including the victim’s parents.”

“Teachers and instructors are supposed to protect our youth while they progress in their learning environments, and it is utterly shameful that this individual took advantage of this young girl,” said Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan. “The FBI and its partners remain committed to holding these criminals accountable for exploiting the innocent.”

This case against Phelps was investigated by special agents of the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara Hindelang.  For more on the story, see the video accompanying this article.

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Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today
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