A man armed with a knife hijacked a commercial plane with 13 passengers on board in Belize on the morning of Thursday (17). He was shot dead by one of the aircraft occupants after the landing, according to local police information.
The suspect was identified as Akinyela Sawa Taylor, 49, a US citizen. According to the portal Belize News NetworkTaylor required the plane to leave the country. During the kidnapping, he stabbed the pilot, Howell Grange, and an airline employee Jair Catañeda.
The incident occurred in a Cessna Grand Caravan of the Tropic Air company, which had departed from the city of Corozal at 8:17 am (11:17 am Brasília) to Belize City. Shortly after takeoff, the crew called the emergency alert via transponder to the control tower.
During the flight, the plane performed circular maneuvers while the pilot was trying to control the situation. The aircraft was able to land safely, even with low level of fuel, as reported by ABC News.
After landing, according to the authorities, the kidnapper was neutralized by one of the armed passengers, who reacted by realizing that the situation was a risk to everyone’s life on board.
The injured were taken to local hospitals. There is no updated information about the health status of the pilot and the stabbed employee.
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The case is under investigation by Belize’s authorities, who are evaluating the exact circumstances of the kidnapper’s death and finding out how the passenger obtained the weapon used in the counterattack.
