Boston, MA
Boston-bound traveler refuses to stop masturbating during flight, feds say
A man flying from Abu Dhabi to Boston relentlessly hit on a woman sitting in a nearby row, grabbed her breasts, and snapped photos of her without permission, then — after she rebuffed his crude advances — proceeded to masturbate in full view of at least two other passengers, according to a criminal complaint filed in Massachusetts federal court.
Etihad Airways passenger Krishna Kunapuli, 39, was spotted “actively masturbating” during the 14-hour journey, prompting the flight crew to notify law enforcement, states an FBI affidavit attached to the complaint.
Kunapuli, an Indian national, does not yet have an attorney listed in court records and was not able to be reached for comment on Tuesday. Etihad Airways did not immediately respond to The Independent’s request for comment.
Flight EY7 left the UAE on October 21, with Kunapuli in seat 38A, by the window, according to the affidavit. About four hours into the flight, Kunapuli wandered down the aisle and spotted a woman in seat 44G, an aisle, without anyone in the two seats next to her, the affidavit continues. It says Kunapuli asked if he could sit in one of the empty seats while he waited for the lavatory, and the woman, who is not identified by name in court filings, agreed.
Kunapuli soon started “complimenting [the passenger] on her looks, telling her that she was beautiful,” the affidavit goes on, adding that Kunapuli “bragged about his wealth” and asked the woman “if she would spend the night with him in Boston, and offered to give her $5,000 as a gift.”
“Kunapuli then started to touch [the woman’s] hair and brush it with his fingers back from her face while repeating that [she] was beautiful,” the affidavit alleges. “[The woman] wanted to get away from Kunapuli. She was also having problems with her phone’s in-flight Wi-Fi connection.”
Using the Wi-Fi issue as an excuse, the passenger got up and went to the aft galley to find a flight attendant. Kunapuli followed her there, and continued to hit on her and stroke her hair, the affidavit continues. The woman told Kunapuli to stop touching her and step away, but he alternately ignored her or apologized, then started all over again, according to the affidavit. Eventually, the affidavit says, a flight attendant arrived in the galley and spotted the two, assuming they were “a romantically involved couple… because he saw… Kunapuli grabbing or touching [the woman’s] left breast.”
However, the flight attendant quickly realized that something was amiss, as the woman kept backing away from Kunapuli when he reached for her, the affidavit contends. It says the crew member also noticed Kunapuli was taking pictures of the woman without her permission, after which the woman told her she didn’t know Kunapuli and that he had been subjecting her to unwanted advances. So, the crew member told Kunapuli to return to his own seat, six rows in front of the woman’s, and directed the woman back to hers, according to the affidavit.
Once Kunapuli returned to his seat in row 38, a man sitting one seat over saw Kunapuli watching something on his phone, with a blanket covering his lap, the affidavit states.
“Passenger 2 observed that there was movement under Kunapuli’s blanket,” the affidavit alleges. “Passenger 2 eventually came to suspect that Kunapuli was masturbating under the blanket. Passenger 2 tried to ignore the situation, but eventually saw that Kunapuli’s blanket had moved and that Kunapuli’s penis was exposed and Kunapuli was still masturbating.”
This went on for about 10 minutes, the passenger, who was allowed to relocate to a different seat for the remaining 10 hours of the flight, later told authorities.
A third passenger unsuccessfully attempted to interrupt Kunapuli and eventually alerted a crew member after trying to disregard the behavior, according to the affidavit.
Unable to turn a blind eye to what was happening, a flight attendant confronted Kunapuli and demanded he stop, to which a “startled” Kunapuli apologized and zipped up his trousers, it contends.
The Etihad crew notified law enforcement, and FBI agents, along with Massachusetts State Police investigators, met the plane upon landing at Boston Logan International Airport. Flight attendants identified Kunapuli as the culprit, and he was removed from the aircraft, according to the affidavit. Under questioning, it concludes, Kunapuli “admitted to investigators that he did, in fact, masturbate while in his seat on EY7.”
In 2022, a man aboard a Southwest Airlines flight from Seattle to Phoenix was hit with federal charges for masturbating at least four times during the three-hour trip, later telling police he thought his vulgar actions were “kind of kinky.”
Kunapuli remains in custody as of Tuesday morning, and is due to appear in court on Tuesday afternoon, according to court records. He faces one count of lewd, indecent and obscene acts while in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, and, if convicted, up to 90 days in prison.
Brockton’s Moyzilla food truck offers up Asian comfort food on the go
Moyzilla is a jewel of MA food trucks. Founded by Jon Moy — son of Brockton culinary royalty — it offers Asian comfort food from Brockton to Boston.
Looking for a new marketplace to shop at this spring? You’re in luck – Boston is home to one of the best public markets in the country, according to USA TODAY 10BEST Readers’ Choice Awards.
The annual 10BEST awards highlight the best in travel, food and lifestyle, and winners are chosen by a public voting poll after being nominated by industry experts. In the 2026 food awards, highlighting the top food tours, food cruises, farmers markets and more from across the country, Boston Public Market ranked third in the best public market category.
Here’s what to know before you go to Boston’s top-ranked public market.
Why Boston Public Market ranked third
A year-round indoor marketplace in Downtown Boston, Boston Public Market celebrates the bounty New England has to offer with fresh groceries, prepared meals, crafts and specialty items from over 30 local artisans and food producers, with a focus on seasonal items.
Along with browsing through groceries and goods, guests are invited to join the public market for a variety of special events, including trivia, live music, magic shows and face painting.
Boston Public Market is located at 100 Hanover St. on the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway, directly above the Haymarket MBTA station. Hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday and Tuesday or 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
What other markets made the list?
Here is USA TODAY’s full ranking of the top 10 public markets in the country:
- Reading Terminal Market – Philadelphia, PA
- Milwaukee Public Market – Milwaukee, WI
- Boston Public Market – Boston, MA
- Eastern Market – Detroit, MI
- West Side Market – Cleveland, OH
- Essex Market – New York City, NY
- Lancaster Central Market – Lancaster, PA
- Midtown Global Market – Minneapolis, MN
- Grand Central Market – Los Angeles, CA
- North Market Downtown – Columbus, OH
The Green Line B branch trains will not run between Kenmore and Boston College through April 30, according to the MBTA.
The nine-day outage will allow T officials to work on several infrastructure improvements and maintenance, the installation of Green Line Train Protection System (GLTPS) infrastructure, replacement of 130-year-old wooden overhead catenary wire “trough” near the Green Line portals and more.
The MBTA announced free, accessible shuttle buses between the two stops, Kenmore and Boston College during the outage. The buses will not stop at Griggs Street, Allston Street, and Packard’s Corner due to “accessibility issues,” T officials said.
During the weekend of April 25 and 26, the outage will extend through Copley, and shuttle buses will skip Griggs Street, Allston Street, and Packard’s Corner during the same weekend.
Throughout the shutdown all Green Line frequency will be reduced between Copley and Government center.
The MBTA urged riders to use the Orange Line at Back Bay during the outage. The agency also noted riders can transfer to Copley from Back Bay, an approximately five-minute walk.
The route 57 bus will also be free from April 22 through 24 and April 27 through 30 for alternate service between Kenmore and Packard’s Corner, the MBTA stated. During the April 25 and 26 weekend, the T noted the bus will not be a good alternate with not Green Line service at Kenmore.
During the shutdown, riders taking shuttle buses should budget extra travel time, the T said.
“For example, a rider travelling to Park Street from Boston College should budget at least an additional 10 minutes of travel in additional to their regular commute,” the MBTA stated.
More information is available on-site through transit ambassadors and T staff, virtually through T-Alerts or following the MBTA on X @MBTA, or via the mbta.com/GreenLine.
Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe combined for 59 points, and the Philadelphia 76ers looked like a completely different team against the Boston Celtics in Game 2.
And unlike Game 1, the Sixers’ defense also showed up, holding Boston to 43 second-half points and 39 percent shooting for the game in a 111-97 road win to tie this Eastern Conference first-round series at 1-1.
Edgecombe scored a team-high 30 points on 12-for-20 shooting, and Maxey added 29 points and nine assists. The Sixers’ backcourt duo combined to shoot 11-for-22 from 3-point range. The Sixers were 19-for-39 from 3 after going 4 of 23 from that distance in Game 1.
Boston was led by Jaylen Brown’s game-high 36 points, but Jayson Tatum was the only other Celtics player who scored in double figures with 19. Boston shot 13-for-50 from 3-point range.
Here are some takeaways with Game 3 set for Friday in Philadelphia.
Celtics offense falls flat
The Celtics knew to expect a different effort from the 76ers.
One adjustment from Philadelphia likely didn’t take Boston by surprise. After taking just 23 3-pointers in Game 1, the 76ers sought out more long balls in Game 2.
Maxey called his own number more often. Edgecombe was aggressive from the start. As a team, the 76ers played with more freedom, firing plenty of shots that they might have turned down in the series opener. Philadelphia made plenty of those looks while shooting 48.7 percent from behind the arc.
Still, the Celtics would have been all right if they had played their usual offensive game. Instead, their offense was their biggest issue. They shot just 39.3 percent on field goal attempts. They missed 37 of 50 3-point attempts. They committed an atypical 13 turnovers.
Trying to come back in the fourth quarter, they had too many empty offensive possessions. Jaylen Brown got blocked while trying to beat the shot clock buzzer and picked up an offensive foul while hitting Maxey in the face. Jayson Tatum missed a contested pull-up 3-pointer early in the shot clock on one possession and threw away a pass on another. Derrick White was left wide open in the left corner but couldn’t find the bottom of the net. The 76ers left the door open early in the fourth quarter by missing several shots, including a couple of layups, but the Celtics couldn’t fully capitalize. Eventually, Maxey sank a series of baskets to create more separation for Philadelphia, and the Celtics largely went away down the stretch. — Jay King, Celtics beat writer
Sixers bounce back in Boston
This is the way the 76ers have to play if they want to extend this series as far as possible.
Maxey and Edgecombe have to dominate their guard matchups, which is exactly what they did in Tuesday night’s Game 2. Paul George needs to be a deterrent to Celtics stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. He doesn’t have to eclipse them, because that would be difficult. But he does have to give them a bit of pause. Most of all, the 76ers have to play the focused brand of basketball they exhibited in Game 2 rather than the sloppy and slapstick kind of hoops they played in Game 1.
The Celtics are such a good team that the above equates to near-perfect basketball. But that’s the task the Sixers are facing, particularly without star center Joel Embiid. On Tuesday night, this was a team up to the task. They were focused. They executed on both ends of the floor. They got much better play from their role players. Maxey and Edgecombe were absolutely dominant.
Overall, on both ends of the floor, this is the best game the 76ers have played in months. And they got it at just the right time. Now we have a 1-1 series heading back to Philadelphia. — Tony Jones, Sixers beat writer
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