British Airways has agreed to pay an
undisclosed amount to children who were sexually abused by one of its
pilots in East Africa. Simon Wood, 54, from Potters Bar in
Hertfordshire, took his own life in August 2013 after he was accused of
sexually assaulting children.
He was hit by a train 11 days before he was due to appear in a UK court charged with abuse in Africa and the UK.
BA, which denies liability, called the accusations "shocking and horrifying".
Lawyers claimed the airline is responsible because the alleged victims were assaulted by Mr Wood while he was on stopovers.
A
mother of two of the alleged victims, aged nine and 16, said Mr Wood
took them all to the Intercontinental Hotel in Nairobi during stopovers
in Kenya and showered her children with gifts.
The woman said he would bathe her children and others and also take them out.
Mr
Wood had been charged with one count of indecently assaulting a girl
under 16, two counts of making indecent photographs of a child and one
count of possessing indecent images of a child.
'Distress and suffering'
An
inquest in July 2014 ruled that he had taken his own life following the
accusations, which included allegations that he abused children in
Africa while doing voluntary work for the airline.
In Africa he
allegedly molested girls between the ages of five and 13 in schools and
orphanages in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania between 2003 and 2013, law firm
Leigh Day said in July 2014.
In a statement, BA said: "The allegations against Simon Wood have been shocking and horrifying.
"Though
we do not bear any legal responsibility for Simon Wood's actions, we
recognise the impact they had on his victims and the distress and
suffering they caused.
"This recognition is reflected in the agreement we have made with the victims' representatives."
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-35724038
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