Man Arrested Over Attempt To Hijack Mexican Plane To US

A 31-year-old man was arrested on Sunday after attempting to redirect a domestic flight operated by Volaris from Mexico to the United States of America.

A statement from the Secretariat of Security and Civilian Protection said, “A subject assaulted a flight attendant and attempted to enter the cockpit to divert the flight to the United States.”

The Airbus A320 plane, which took off around 7:17 am local time, was bound for the northwest city of Tijuana from the central city of Leon, Guanajuato, but had to make an emergency landing at Guadalajara International Airport about 45 minutes into the flight.

However, crew members were able to subdue the man who was reportedly traveling with family, and issued an alert to conduct an emergency landing in Guadalajara.

“The aggressor told them a close relative had been kidnapped and, upon taking off from Leon, was threatened to be killed if he went to Tijuana,” said flight operator of Volaris.

No information was provided in either statement regarding the number of other passengers on the flight, following the arrest, the flight continued to its intended destination.

Guanajuato is among the states most severely affected by violence related to drug cartels, which has expanded to include crimes such as extortion and kidnapping.