NRI Student Fined ₹2 Cr & Sentenced to 10 Years in Jail in Boston

Twenty eight-year-old Praneeth Kumar Usiripalli has been indicted in Boston for allegedly stabbing two 17-year-old passengers with a metal fork on a Lufthansa flight, on its way to Frankfurt from Chicago last month.

On October 25, Praneeth was travelling on the Lufthansa flight. After the meal service, one of the victims was sleeping in a middle seat and when he woke up, he saw Usiripalli standing over him. Praneeth used his right hand to strike him in the left clavicle area with a metal fork. Then he turned to a second teenager seated near to the first one. Praneeth lunged towards the second victim and struck the minor in the back of his head with the fork, prosecutors said. Under the impact of the attack, the second minor suffered a laceration to the back of his head.

Witnessing Praneeth turn violent, prosecutors said that the flight crew tried to intervene. However, he allegedly “raised his hand, formed a gun with his fingers, put it in his mouth and pulled an imaginary trigger.” Then he turned toward a female passenger and slapped her and even tried to slap a crew member.

Following the violent events, the aircraft was diverted to Boston Logan International Airport, where he was taken into custody soon as the plane landed.

The prosecutors in the Boston court said that Praneeth entered US on a student visa but no longer had lawful status at the time of the ‘assault’. He was enrolled in a master’s programme in biblical studies.

If convicted, Usiripalli would face prison up to 10 years, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 would also be imposed on him.

The prosecutors in the Boston court said the details in the charging document still remain allegations. Praneeth is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.