WORLD> Africa
Airplane hijacker captured in Jamaica, no injuries
(Agencies/Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-04-20 22:33

KINGSTON – A gunman forced his way though airport security and hijacked a Canadian jet near Montego Bay, holding six crew members hostage for eight hours before police and soldiers stormed the aircraft on Monday and captured the man.

Airplane hijacker captured in Jamaica, no injuries
A Boeing 737 belonging to CanJet sits on the tarmac near the Jamaican resort of Montego Bay, Monday, April 20, 2009. [Agencies]
Nobody was killed or injured in the ordeal, which ended with a raid near daylight after talks broke down with a 20-year-old Jamaican hijacker described as "mentally challenged."

"We were getting nowhere with the negotiations," Jamaican Information Minister Daryl Vaz told The Associated Press. "Police and military went on the plane and captured him."

Related readings:
 Airplane hijacker captured in Jamaica, no injuries Gunman holds crew on passenger jet in Jamaica
 Airplane hijacker captured in Jamaica, no injuries All passengers freed from plane held in Jamaica
Airplane hijacker captured in Jamaica, no injuries Gunman holds crew on passenger jet in Jamaica
 Airplane hijacker captured in Jamaica, no injuries CNN: 167 passengers released, 7 held hostages in Jamaica
The suspect identified as Stephen Fray was in custody. Vaz said he is a "mentally challenged" 20-year-old man from the northwestern resort city of Montego Bay. He did not detail the man's mental condition but said he was apparently upset over a failed relationship.

The hostage crisis that began around 10:20 p.m. Sunday and ended near 6:40 a.m., when members of the Jamaica Defence Force Counter Terrorism Operations Group stormed the aircraft's cabin, according to a police statement.

The young man boarded CanJet Airlines Flight 918 in Montego Bay and demanded to be flown to Cuba, Vaz told The Associated Press.

A total of 159 passengers and eight crew members were aboard the Boeing 737 at the time, according to Jamaican police. Police said all the passengers and two crew members were released after a short time.

There were unconfirmed reports that a shot was fired outside the aircraft, CanJet Vice President Kent Woodside said in a news conference Monday. He said the passengers also were robbed.

Alphonse Gosselin, whose 30-year-old son Christian was on the plane, said his son told him that the hijacker pointed a gun at him and other passengers. Christian and his girlfriend were among a group of 22 family members traveling to Cuba for a wedding.

"The first thing that he said to his girlfriend was, 'Be calm. Don't say a word.' He said take your passport and your credit card and put it in your back pocket. He said we'll give him the money," Gosselin said in an interview from Tracadie Sheila, New Brunswick.

   Previous page 1 2 3 4 Next Page