Man charged in alleged plane hijacking that grounded YVR flights had ideological motive
A man has been charged in the alleged hijacking of a small aircraft that disrupted operations at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) on Tuesday afternoon.
The RCMP Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (INSET) with Federal Policing – Pacific Region have announced that Shaheer Cassim has been charged with one count of hijacking under Section 76(d) of the Criminal Code.
Cassim, 39, is alleged to have threatened a flight instructor and hijacked a Cessna 172 plane while at the Victoria International Airport on July 15.
SynSyx/Supplied
“Investigators have determined the suspect acted with an ideological motive to disrupt airspace,” says Sgt. Tammy Lobb, media relations officer with Federal Policing – Pacific Region. “Thankfully, no one was injured during this incident.”
What the ideological motive was has not yet been revealed by police.
According to authorities, Richmond RCMP received a report at approximately 1:10 p.m. on Tuesday that the Cessna with one occupant had been hijacked from Vancouver Island and was entering YVR airspace.
The plane safely landed at 1:45 p.m., and the suspect was arrested without incident. A YVR spokesperson previously issued a statement to Daily Hive stating that the ground stop for arrivals lasted 39 minutes, with nine inbound aircraft diverted to alternate airports.
A traveller at YVR told Daily Hive that they were at the main terminal waiting for an international departure when a friend who worked in air traffic control alerted them to the situation.
“I was at the bag drop, and we were trying to see if our plane was at the gate yet. That’s when he noticed the airport was in a ground stop,” said Reddit user SynSyx.
“At that point, he started listening to LiveATC, where you can hear the live radio of the airport and pilots, and shared that there was a ‘suspect aircraft circling over the airport, intentions unknown.'”
Cassim has been remanded until his next court appearance on Tuesday, July 22, with INSET assuming conduct of the investigation.