NEWSPeter Thiel Private Jet Lawsuit Puts Alleged Mid-Air Workplace Assault Under Scrutiny
A former flight attendant accused Peter Thiel’s husband, Matthew Danzeisen, of assault aboard a private jet.
July 18 2026, Published 12:45 p.m. ET
A lawsuit tied to tech mogul Peter Thiel’s private jet is turning a luxury travel workplace into a high-stakes public fight.
Former flight attendant Stefanie Bojar alleges that Matthew Danzeisen, Thiel’s husband and the head of private investments at Thiel Capital, assaulted her on July 13, 2024, aboard Thiel’s Gulfstream G550 in Sun Valley, Idaho. Bojar claims the incident left her with injuries so severe that she later underwent ankle surgery.
Stefanie Bojar filed a federal counterclaim against Matthew Danzeisen and Thiel Capital.
Danzeisen sued Bojar first, however. Bojar has responded with a federal counterclaim against Danzeisen and Thiel Capital LLC, accusing them of filing a “preemptive lawsuit” after the alleged assault.
“They raced to the courthouse to sue her first, hoping their vast resources would bully her into submission and force her to litigate on their chosen terms,” Bojar’s attorneys, Elliott Jung and Michael Hernandez, said in a joint statement.
The Alleged Jet Incident
Attorneys disputed the events that allegedly unfolded during the flight.
The alleged confrontation happened as Thiel, his family and their nanny boarded the jet after attending the annual Allen & Co. gathering in Sun Valley.
Bojar, who says she worked more than 200 flights for the Thiel-Danzeisen family through her then-employer, Solairus Aviation, alleges Danzeisen became angry because cooler bags were blocking a bathroom. According to her filing, Danzeisen hurled the coolers at her, striking her left ankle, foot and leg before she collapsed. She also alleges he threw a filled grocery bag at her.
The court filing claims Danzeisen had a reputation for volatile behavior aboard the aircraft and alleges at least two other flight attendants stopped working on the jet after “suffering similar abuse.”
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Team Thiel Denies the Claims
Peter Thiel's legal team denied the allegations in court filings.
A person close to Thiel told The Daily Beast the case is “a shakedown by a woman upset she wasn’t offered the job and salary she wanted, who turned around and demanded millions after Mr. Danzeisen moved cooler bags out of the way so his child could use the bathroom.”
Attorney Alex Spiro, whose high-profile clients include Elon Musk, is representing Thiel’s side.
“This is a shakedown about a bag that bumped into someone’s leg, and we do not pay out to shakedowns, so we will see everyone in court,” Spiro told the outlet.
What These Cases Often Turn On
A legal expert explained the evidence that often shapes workplace assault cases.
“Cases like these usually come down to four things: the evidence, the witnesses, the documentation, and what the employer knew,” said Bobby Taghavi, Managing Partner of the law firm Sweet James.
“Documentation is often the difference-maker in cases like this. Contemporaneous reports, witness statements, text messages, and medical records usually carry far more weight than memories years later,” Taghavi explained.
“These cases also frequently settle because both sides are balancing litigation risk, confidentiality concerns, and the reputational impact,” he added, “especially in an industry like private aviation where trust and professionalism are everything.”
