Alleged B.C. hijacker Shaheer Cassim faces 2nd charge, court records show
The man accused of hijacking a plane and triggering a security scare at Vancouver International Airport last week faces a second charge related to the rogue flight.
B.C. online court records say a charge of damaging or interfering with a navigation system was sworn Friday against Shaheer Cassim.
Cassim was arrested July 15 after allegedly threatening a flight instructor at Victoria International Airport, seizing control of a small Cessna 172 plane, then circling the plane over Vancouver's airport before landing and being arrested by police.
Police say the 39-year-old had an "ideological motive to disrupt airspace" and announced a charge of hijacking the day after the flight. They have not specified what the ideological motive was.
WATCH | Ideological motive suspected in alleged hijacking:
New details emerge around man charged in alleged plane hijacking in B.C.
4 days ago
Shaheer Cassim has been charged with one count of hijacking after an incident that saw flights grounded at Vancouver's airport for a little under an hour. Police have said the suspect had "an ideological motive to disrupt airspace." A Facebook profile of a man with the same name that lists him as holding a commercial pilot's licence and having worked on Vancouver Island makes religious references and describes himself as both a "Messiah" and as someone "sent by Allah" to save the world from climate change.
Both charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison if the accused is found guilty.
A man with the same name has a social media profile where he lists himself as a former commercial airline pilot.
The day before the alleged hijacking, the man posted on social media that he was a "messenger of Allah."
"I am the Messiah sent to save humanity from climate change and usher in an era of world peace," the post reads.
Cassim is expected to appear in provincial court in Richmond, B.C., on Tuesday.
The alleged hijacking led to nine flights being diverted from Vancouver International Airport, and flights were grounded at the airport for just under 40 minutes in the middle of the day.
U.S. fighter jets were scrambled in response to the alleged hijacking, though Cassim was ultimately arrested before they intercepted the plane at Vancouver airport.
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