A British-Pakistani businessman who threatened to “gang-rape” and murder a flight attendant on a London-to-Lahore flight has had his jail sentence more than tripled after an appeals court ruled his original punishment was far too lenient.
Salman Iftikhar, 38, from Iver, Buckinghamshire, became violent midair in February 2023 while travelling first class with his three children and one of his wives.
It is reported that after drinking champagne and helping himself to ice from the on-board bar, crew members asked 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,’” court documents stated.
Iftikhar then targeted senior flight attendant Angie Walsh with a tirade of abuse, threatening 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 crew were due to stay in Pakistan.
It is further reported that the abuse lasted throughout the eight-hour flight, with the captain even considering diverting the plane to Turkey.
Solicitor General Rt Hon Ellie Reeves MP said: “Salman Iftikhar made horrific threats of rape and violence against an air steward who was simply doing her job. His tirade of hate and abuse caused distress and anguish for the whole flight, and all of our thoughts today should be with the cabin crew and passengers who suffered from Iftikhar’s vile behaviour.”
Walsh, a 37-year veteran of the airline, said the incident left her “haunted and traumatised” and forced her to take 14 months off work. “I can’t quite believe that one passenger has had this much of an impact on my job, my career, and my life,” she said.
Iftikhar was arrested the following month and later pleaded guilty to threats to kill and racially aggravated harassment.
Despite having six previous convictions, he was initially sentenced in August 2025 to just 15 months in prison. Following public outcry and a referral under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme, the Court of Appeal increased his sentence to four years and three months.
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