ATLANTA, GA. — The employer of a 60-year-old Idaho executive says it has suspended the man after authorities charged him with slapping a 2-year-old boy aboard a flight to Atlanta.
The parent company of Unitech Composites and Structures in Hayden confirmed today that its president, Joe Rickey Hundley, was suspended pending the outcome of the criminal investigation, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported.
Al Haase, president and CEO of parent company AGC Aerospace and Defense, Composite Group, said in a statement the company is "taking this matter seriously."
Hundley was charged with simple assault after Jessica Bennett of Minneapolis told authorities he slapped her crying boy in the face and used a racial slur.
Hundley's attorney, Marcia Shein, said Friday that "it is important to let the case develop."
HAYDEN, Idaho - According to Federal Court Documents Joseph Rickey Hundley of Hayden Idaho was on a Delta flight from Minneapolis to Atlanta when he allegedly slapped a baby. Court documents say the airplane was descending and due to an altitude change the 2-year old child started crying.
The 33-year-old mother, Jessica Bennett was sitting next to Hundley on the flight. In court documents Bennett says when her child began to cry, Hundley told her to "shut that n-baby up," then slapped her child which "caused the juvenile to scream even louder."
Hundley is a Hayden Idaho resident and according to thesmokinggun.com Hundley is the president of an aircraft manufacturer based in Hayden. Hundley has been charged with simple assault, a misdemeanor. In an interview with thesmokinggun.com, Hundely denied striking the child and using a racial slur. He told the online news source that he "asked the mother to quiet the child."
He also described himself as "distraught" on the flight and had a single alcoholic drink. According to Idaho State records Hundley was found guilty of DUI in March of 2012.
