An American citizen diverted a small tropical airplane in Belize on Thursday in Knifoint before being killed by a passenger, reported Reuters, citing the police.
The attacker, identified as an American citizen, Akinyela Sawa Taylor, pulled a knife while the plane was in the air, demanding that the domestic flight.
The tropic airplane carried 14 passengers and two crew members. He was flying from Corozal, a small town near the Belize border with Mexico, heading for the popular tourist destination of San Pedro when it was diverted, according to the Associated Press.
According to police commissioner Chester Williams, Taylor stabbed three people on board, including the pilot and the passenger who shot Taylor with an authorized firearm.
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While the drama took place in the sky, the plane turned random for almost two hours before landing safely.
The two wounded passengers and the pilot were treated in a hospital for their injuries, according to officials.
Williams said the passenger who had managed to shoot Taylor had been stabbed behind his back and suffered a puncture in his lungs. It remains in critical condition.
“We pray for him,” Williams told journalists. “It’s our hero.”
The officer added that it is not clear how Taylor went up on the plane with a knife, even if he recognized that the country’s ventilation breads were missing to fully search for passengers.
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In Washington, the spokesperson for the US State Department, Tammy Bruce said that the officials still collected information on what happened, the Associated Press reported.
“Horrible,” she said. “We are grateful, I think we are all, that it has not transformed into a mass event with, I believe, more than a dozen people on the plane. Obviously, we know some details. We do not know more. ”
Who was Akinyela Sawa Taylor?
According to information published by the airport, Taylor was a teacher in the United States.
It was listed online as being previously football coach at McCluer North High School in Floriant, Missouri. However, an employee of the school told Reuters that Taylor was not working on it.
(Agencies)
