Priest on divine mission hijacks Mexican plane

MEXICO CITY - A Protestant priest who said he was on a divine mission hijacked a Mexican plane mid-air Wednesday with 104 people on board triggering a brief airport drama, officials said.

Bible-carrying Jose Mar Flores Pereira was said by Mexican officials to have hijacked the Aeromexico Boeing 737 after it left from the popular tourist resort of Cancun on a flight to Mexico City.

He told authorities he had wanted to protect the country after he "had a revelation that Mexico was facing a great danger, and was threatened by an earthquake," public security official, Genaro Garcia Luna, said.

The alleged hijacker was said to be a former prisoner and drug addict from Bolivia, who has lived in Mexico for 17 years.

But it was not immediately clear if he was helped by others as officials said five other people were arrested for security reasons.

Flores Pereira hinted that he was acting with two accomplices, "referring to himself (the Father), the Son and the Holy Spirit," Garcia Luna said.

All the people onboard the flight were safely evacuated at Mexico City, officials said, as security forces swarmed the capital's international airport within minutes of the plane landing.

Initial reports that the hijackers were carrying explosives were denied by Transport Secretary Juan Francisco Molinar Horcasitas who told local television there was no bomb on board.

The priest said that his act was linked to Wednesday's date, September 9, 2009 because the numbers 9/9/9 were the opposite of 6/6/6 the numbers associated with the AntiChrist.

Flores Pereira demanded to fly over the airport "seven times" and to speak with President Felipe Calderon, Garcia Luna said, adding the priest had warned he was carrying a explosive device, but in fact he was not.

Calderon canceled his afternoon meetings to head to the sprawling airport, after Aeromexico Flight 576 carrying 104 people was hijacked after leaving the eastern Mexican resort popular with American tourists.

"We only learned about it when we landed and we informed by the crew over the radio that we had been hijacked," said passenger Rodrigo Padilla.
"Everything was very quiet, there were no guns, no shots were fired.

“In less than an hour, the drama had been brought to an end.

"We intervened in this crisis and all the passengers were taken to safety. The security forces are now carrying out the necessary investigations," Horcasitas said.

None of the hijackers had been able to enter the plane's cockpit during the flight, neither "were they able to compromise the aircraft's safety," he added.

The US State Department said it was checking to see if any Americans were on board the hijacked flight and was seeking to obtain the manifest.

Television images showed chaotic scenes as the passengers, most dressed in shorts and T-shirts, descended from the plane, some carrying young children and clutching bags.

They were briefly made to sit on the tarmac by security forces, before being led away.

The last to leave the plane was the captain, who had negotiated the release of the passengers with a woman air controller.

Bomb experts then moved in and were seen on the television carefully carrying out checks on the plane.

It was the first time the airline had suffered a hijacking since 1972, when leftist guerrillas seized one of its planes demanding the release of some of their fellow rebels.

The release of the passengers was negotiated.

The last hijacking in the region was in April in Jamaica, when an armed man took over a CanJet Boeing 737 due to fly from Montego Bay to Cuba.

All 182 people on board the Canadian airliner were rescued unharmed when Jamaican police stormed the airliner and captured the mentally troubled gunman without firing a shot. - AFP/vm

Source: CNA

Posted by jpgnfX @ HWZ