A West London architect has been convicted of drunkenly attacking a member of cabin crew on a flight from Dubai to Heathrow, with an arrest warrant now issued after she failed to appear in court. Simone de Gale, 44, of Chepstow Place, Notting Hill, was found guilty in her absence of four charges at Ealing Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, October 15, the Metropolitan Police said.
Details of the attack and conviction
The charges stem from an incident on a Virgin Atlantic flight on February 5, when de Gale assaulted a member of cabin crew. She was convicted of assault by beating, being drunk in an aircraft, behaving in a threatening, abusive, insulting or disorderly manner towards a member of aircraft crew, and using threatening or abusive words or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.
De Gale, who founded Simone de Gale Architects, failed to attend her court appearance, prompting the Metropolitan Police to issue an arrest warrant. The force confirmed the warrant in a statement following the trial.
Arrest footage and response
Footage of de Gale’s arrest at Heathrow Airport, released by the Crown Prosecution Service, shows her telling officers, “I’ve not touched anyone or anything,” and adding, “I recorded everything on a video.” When informed she was being placed under arrest, she replied, “I don’t think that’s possible.”
According to her LinkedIn page, de Gale also serves as head of planning for the Belgravia Society, handling planning matters with Westminster City Council and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. She has previously been pictured meeting the King and the Princess of Wales.
Next steps
The arrest warrant remains active, and the Metropolitan Police are seeking to locate de Gale to bring her before the court for sentencing. The conviction marks a significant legal outcome for the airline crew member involved in the February incident.
