A 13-year-old girl was molested on a Hawaiian Airlines flight Friday night en route from Honolulu to Phoenix, according to federal court documents and a spokesman for the airline.

Shawn Michael Cole, 40, was arrested on suspicion of sexual abuse of a minor in Phoenix after airline personnel noticed that Cole was caressing the victim.

According to federal court documents, Cole was seated next to the victim who had closed her eyes while watching an in-flight movie. Cole then proceeded to molest the victim, who "pretended to be asleep during the incident because she was afraid."

Austin Draper, a flight attendant for Hawaiian Airlines, noticed the strange behavior and asked Cole if he was traveling with the girl. Cole said, "yes," but the victim said they were not traveling together. At that point the flight attendant moved the victim to a seat away from Cole and the victim recalled what had happened.

The flight crew reported the incident to the captain of the airplane and local authorities were alerted. Phoenix police detained Cole upon arrival of the flight.

"This incident is disturbing to all of us," said Keoni Wagner, a spokesman for Hawaiian Airlines. "We hope he will be held accountable for his actions."

According to Wagner, the victim was traveling with a parent. The victim and the parent originally were seated together, but at some point during the flight, one of them moved several rows away.