Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Aeromexico flight briefly hijacked (updated)

Update (6.15pm):
Mexican Public Security head Genaro García Luna told the press that there was a lone presumed hijacker of Aeromexico flight 576. The suspect is a Bolivian pastor named José Flores Pereira who allegedly confessed to authorities that he hijacked the plane due to a "divine revelation." García Luna added that Flores Pereira is a drug addict and alcoholic and also described how police were able to commandeer the plane in Mexico City.

Update (5.15pm):
Mexico's Office of the Attorney General have charged the now nine suspected hijackers with "terrorism, unlawful kidnapping" and other charges.

Meanwhile, Bolivia's ambassador to Mexico denied that the abductors may've come from that country as some early reports claimed. The suspects are "did not appear Bolivian" and were taller than the average Bolivian said Jorge Mansilla Torres who added that there are no direct flights from Bolivia to Mexico.

Update (4.45pm):
According to Milenio's website police captured at least six suspected hijackers of Aeromexico flight 576. The nationalities of the accused have yet to be revealed despite earlier reports claiming that they are not Mexican.

One of the passengers briefly spoke on TV and claimed that one of the hijackers was "well-dressed, robust, dark-skinned (and) a good passenger."

Transportation Secretary Juan Molinar Horcasitas told the press that there was no bomb on board the plane. All the occupants were freed said Horcasitas and none of them are injured.

The following footage from MSNBC shows the passengers getting off the plane under police observation:


Original Post:
In a developing new story, an Aeromexico flight bound for Cancun was hijacked and diverted to Mexico City.

According to footage shown by Televisa police troops surrounded Flight 576 shortly after landing and freed all the plane's occupants. CNN en Espanol reported cited TV Azteca who claimed that five people have been detained by police.

According to previous reports, three men took over the plane in midair and and threatened to explode it unless they could speak to Mexican president Felipe Calderon. (Calderon had been at the presidential hangar in that airport yet canceled his flight and left the facility as the hijacking transpired). The identity of the hijackers is unknown though one Mexican source claimed that the abductors could be of Colombian or Bolivian background.

The entire incident began roughly two hours ago but it appears to be under control.

Details continue to be very sketchy at the time of this post. We will update it as soon as more information becomes known.

Online Sources - CNN, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Reuters
Image- CNN

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Do not "look Bolivian" it is if to a person to appeard Mexicam has to have a sombrero drunk and beating his wife this person do not look Mexican,Bolivians are some indians, others mestizos, criollos,nisei,and 2 o 3 generations from imigrants from Yugoslavia,Germans, etc.
Some indians are tall,we are criollos my family here since the 1600 hundredes and we have blonds, red hair and black. we are all Bolivians.

yolanda said...

I just want to know how is this happening again. Wheres all the airport security air marshalls. Looks as if things are getting too lacks again.