This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/jul/30/ba-pilot-charged-child-abuse-offences-uk-africa-took-own-life-coroner

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
BA pilot charged with child abuse offences took his own life, coroner rules BA pilot charged with child abuse offences took his own life, coroner rules
(about 7 hours later)
A British Airways pilot who was struck by a train after he was charged with child abuse offences took his own life, a coroner has ruled .A British Airways pilot who was struck by a train after he was charged with child abuse offences took his own life, a coroner has ruled .
First Officer Simon Wood, 54, allegedly molested children in African schools and orphanages after claiming he was carrying out charity work for the airline. First Officer Simon Wood, 54, allegedly molested children in African schools and orphanages after claiming he was carrying out charity work for the airline. British Airways is to be sued for damages by 16 alleged victims.
He was due to appear in court last August to face separate charges of indecent assault on an eight-year-old girl and possessing indecent images of children, but was found dead after being struck by a train near Potters Bar station in Hertfordshire. Wood was due to appear in court last August to face separate charges of indecent assault on an eight-year-old girl and possessing indecent images of children, but was found dead after being struck by a train near Potters Bar station in Hertfordshire.
Graham Danbury, the deputy coroner for Hertfordshire, said: "I'm satisfied that, as a result of having been charged with offences, he was in a state of considerable distress which would have been understandable. Graham Danbury, the deputy coroner for Hertfordshire, said: "He felt that his only way out was to take his own life."
"He felt that his only way out was to take his own life." Gary Mathias, a fatality investigator at the British transport police, told the inquest that Wood's body was found on the railway line between Hatfield and Potters Bar stations.
British Airways is to be sued for damages by 16 alleged victims, some of whom are still aged only eight. A member of staff on a First Capital Connect train had spotted a man wearing a grey hooded top and blue jeans stood two metres from the track and alerted signal staff, he said. An hour later a passenger on another train saw a person wearing similar clothing lying on the track, Mathias said. Police officers discovered Wood's body which had been "severely injured by a passing train", the hearing was told. No train drivers had been aware of hitting a person but CCTV images had later shown a man believed to be Wood moving on to the track. The cause of death was given as multiple traumatic injuries.
Gary Mathias, a fatality investigator at the British Transport Police (BTP), told the inquest that Wood's body was found on the railway line between Hatfield and Potters Bar stations.
A member of staff on a First Capital Connect train had spotted a man wearing a grey hooded top and blue jeans stood two metres from the track and alerted signal staff, he said.
An hour later a passenger on another train saw a person wearing similar clothing lying on the track, Mathias said. BTP officers were alerted and discovered Wood's body which had been "severely injured by a passing train", the hearing was told. No train drivers had been aware of hitting a person but CCTV images from a train had later shown a man believed to be Wood moving on to the track.
The cause of death was given as multiple traumatic injuries.
Following the inquest, Wood's family released a statement which read: "Simon's death and the circumstances surrounding it have been difficult for all concerned. We request that the privacy of the Wood family be respected at this time."Following the inquest, Wood's family released a statement which read: "Simon's death and the circumstances surrounding it have been difficult for all concerned. We request that the privacy of the Wood family be respected at this time."
Wood was charged on 15 August 2013 with indecent assaulting an eight-year-old girl and 17 offences of possessing indecent images of children. Wood was charged on 15 August 2013 with indecently assaulting an eight-year-old girl and 17 offences of possessing indecent images of children. Lawyers representing the young girls and women who claim the pilot assaulted them said the airline bears responsibility because he carried out the alleged attacks while on stopovers in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The alleged period of abuse was between 2003 and 2013, when the girls were aged five to 13, the law firm Leigh Day said.
Lawyers representing the young girls and women who claim the pilot assaulted them said the airline bears responsibility because he carried out the alleged attacks while on stopovers in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
The alleged period of abuse was from 2003 to 2013, when the girls were aged five to 13, the law firm Leigh Day said.
Nichola Marshall, representing the alleged victims, said: "We allege that Wood was able to abuse the victims by reason of his employment with the airline, in particular through his involvement with the airlines' community relations work. The schools and orphanages that our clients attended were all in receipt of charitable donations from the airline, and Wood played a key role in administering those donations on behalf of British Airways.Nichola Marshall, representing the alleged victims, said: "We allege that Wood was able to abuse the victims by reason of his employment with the airline, in particular through his involvement with the airlines' community relations work. The schools and orphanages that our clients attended were all in receipt of charitable donations from the airline, and Wood played a key role in administering those donations on behalf of British Airways.
"Our team will be travelling overseas over the coming weeks to meet with other potential victims in Nairobi and Uganda that have come forward more recently." A British Airways spokesman said: "Our sympathies are with the victims and it is disappointing that the conduct of one person has caused so much distress to the many … people who engage in charitable works on a regular basis."
A British Airways spokesman said: "We were shocked and horrified to hear the allegations against Simon Wood, which appear to relate to his involvement in child-related activities entirely outside the scope of his employment with British Airways.
"Our sympathies are with the victims and it is disappointing that the conduct of one person has caused so much distress to the many thousands of decent people who engage in charitable works on a regular basis."