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Global News
3 days ago
- Global News
Suspect charged with hijacking in YVR incident used to be a pilot
The suspect charged with hijacking in connection with an incident at Vancouver International Airport on Tuesday was a pilot more than a decade ago. Shaheer Cassim, 39, has been charged with hijacking after being accused of stealing a small plane from the Victoria Flying Club, flying it over the Salish Sea and eventually landing it at YVR. Cassim made a brief court appearance on Wednesday afternoon and remains in custody. A Facebook page of someone with the same name and image describes himself as a 'messenger of Allah.' 'I am the messiah sent to save humanity from climate change and usher in an era of world peace.' This person also writes about climate change, saying the sea ice is going to disappear within two years and humans will eventually go extinct. Story continues below advertisement The Facebook profile says he was employed from 2008 to 2010 by now-defunct KD Air, a small airline based on Vancouver Island. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The airline's former owners, Diana and Lars Banke, said in an interview that Cassim was one of the smartest and best pilots they ever worked with, calling him a fast learner who was highly intelligent. But Lars Banke said Cassim left the airline after getting 'bored' and then went to medical school. He also said Cassim believed the world was coming to an end. Cassim has been involved in climate activism in the past and in 2012 he held a news conference in Victoria at the start of a cross-country bicycle trek to raise awareness about global warming. Under the Criminal Code of Canada, a charge of hijacking could mean a sentence of life in prison. The Prosecution Service of Canada has also indicated this charge could come with terrorism implications. Story continues below advertisement An order has been made to determine if Cassim is fit to stand trial. — with files from The Canadian Press
National Post
3 days ago
- National Post
Ex-pilot called himself messiah on climate-change mission, day before alleged hijack in Vancouver
The day before the suspected hijacking of a light aircraft triggered a security scare at Vancouver's airport this week, former commercial pilot Shaheer Cassim posted on social media that he was a 'messenger of Allah' sent to save humanity from climate change. Article content A 39-year-old man with the same name has now been charged with hijacking, constituting terrorism, over the incident on Tuesday that saw Norad scramble F-15 fighter jets before the light plane safely landed. Article content Article content Article content RCMP say the suspect had an 'ideological motive' and allegedly seized control of the plane at Victoria International Airport after threatening a flight instructor, before flying to Vancouver. Article content Article content Images posted on social media depicting the arrest of the Cessna's pilot on the north runway of YVR show a bearded man who resembles climate activist Cassim. Article content In his Facebook post on Monday, Cassim says he's the 'messiah sent to save humanity from climate change and usher in an era of world peace.' Article content In 2012, Cassim held a news conference before going on a cross-country bicycle ride to raise awareness for global warming. Article content His Facebook profile says he was employed from 2008 to 2010 by now-defunct KD Air, a small airline based on Vancouver Island. Article content The airline's former owners, Diana and Lars Banke, said in an interview that Cassim was one of the smartest and best pilots they ever worked with, calling him a fast learner who was highly intelligent. Article content Article content But Lars Banke said Cassim left the airline after getting 'bored' and then went to medical school. He also said Cassim believed the world was coming to an end. Article content Article content Diana Banke said she was 'very surprised' to hear of Cassim's charges, saying he was quite young when he worked for them and was 'like a kid.' Article content 'Something would (have to) be going on that's not normal,' Lars Banke said. 'He was, I would say, a caring person.' Article content Diana Banke said she remembered Cassim 'doing a really long bicycle trek,' and that he brought a dog along with him. Article content Lars Banke said he recalled that Cassim was somewhat interested in environmentalism, but he was unaware of any kind of religious beliefs. Article content 'He never spoke religion with us,' Diana Banke said. Article content Cassim's online posts include musings on religion, climate science, and advocacy for tolerance and peace, including a claim 'the Angel Gabriel appeared before me and gave me a message from Allah.'
Winnipeg Free Press
3 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Ex-pilot called himself messiah on climate-change mission, day before alleged hijack
The day before the suspected hijacking of a light aircraft triggered a security scare at Vancouver's airport this week, former commercial pilot Shaheer Cassim posted on social media that he was a 'messenger of Allah' sent to save humanity from climate change. A 39-year-old man with the same name has now been charged with hijacking, constituting terrorism, over the incident on Tuesday that saw Norad scramble F-15 fighter jets before the light plane safely landed. RCMP say the suspect had an 'ideological motive' and allegedly seized control of the plane at Victoria International Airport after threatening a flight instructor, before flying to Vancouver. Images posted on social media depicting the arrest of the Cessna's pilot on the north runway of YVR show a bearded man who resembles climate activist Cassim. In his Facebook post on Monday, Cassim says he's the 'messiah sent to save humanity from climate change and usher in an era of world peace.' He warns of 'abrupt runaway global warming' that will cause humans to go extinct within a few years. In 2012, Cassim held a news conference before going on a cross-country bicycle ride to raise awareness for global warming. His Facebook profile says he was employed from 2008 to 2010 by now-defunct KD Air, a small airline based on Vancouver Island. The airline's former owners, Diana and Lars Banke, said in an interview that Cassim was one of the smartest and best pilots they ever worked with, calling him a fast learner who was highly intelligent. But Lars Banke said Cassim left the airline after getting 'bored' and then went to medical school. He also said Cassim believed the world was coming to an end. Diana Banke said she was 'very surprised' to hear of Cassim's charges, saying he was quite young when he worked for them and was 'like a kid.' 'Something would (have to) be going on that's not normal,' Lars Banke said. 'He was, I would say, a caring person.' Diana Banke said she remembered Cassim 'doing a really long bicycle trek,' and that he brought a dog along with him. Lars Banke said he recalled that Cassim was somewhat interested in environmentalism, but he was unaware of any kind of religious beliefs. 'He never spoke religion with us,' Diana Banke said. Cassim's online posts include musings on religion, climate science, and advocacy for tolerance and peace, including a claim 'the Angel Gabriel appeared before me and gave me a message from Allah.' 'I'm really surprised that he would've done something like this,' Diana Banke said. His Facebook profile says Cassim attended high school in Lloydminster, Alta., before studying aviation at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. He also describes himself as the editor of a blog devoted to the impact of climate change on the Arctic. It includes hundreds of posts since 2011, many of them highly technical, with the latest entry made on Saturday. It is titled: 'Will humans go extinct soon?' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 17, 2025.
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Ex-pilot called himself messiah on climate-change mission, day before alleged hijack
The day before the suspected hijacking of a light aircraft triggered a security scare at Vancouver's airport this week, former commercial pilot Shaheer Cassim posted on social media that he was a 'messenger of Allah' sent to save humanity from climate change. A 39-year-old man with the same name has now been charged with hijacking, constituting terrorism, over the incident on Tuesday that saw Norad scramble F-15 fighter jets before the light plane safely landed. RCMP say the suspect had an 'ideological motive' and allegedly seized control of the plane at Victoria International Airport after threatening a flight instructor, before flying to Vancouver. Images posted on social media depicting the arrest of the Cessna's pilot on the north runway of YVR show a bearded man who resembles climate activist Cassim. In his Facebook post on Monday, Cassim says he's the 'messiah sent to save humanity from climate change and usher in an era of world peace.' He warns of 'abrupt runaway global warming' that will cause humans to go extinct within a few years. In 2012, Cassim held a news conference before going on a cross-country bicycle ride to raise awareness for global warming. His Facebook profile says he was employed from 2008 to 2010 by now-defunct KD Air, a small airline based on Vancouver Island. The airline's former owners, Diana and Lars Banke, said in an interview that Cassim was one of the smartest and best pilots they ever worked with, calling him a fast learner who was highly intelligent. But Lars Banke said Cassim left the airline after getting 'bored' and then went to medical school. He also said Cassim believed the world was coming to an end. Diana Banke said she was 'very surprised' to hear of Cassim's charges, saying he was quite young when he worked for them and was 'like a kid.' 'Something would (have to) be going on that's not normal,' Lars Banke said. 'He was, I would say, a caring person.' Diana Banke said she remembered Cassim 'doing a really long bicycle trek,' and that he brought a dog along with him. Lars Banke said he recalled that Cassim was somewhat interested in environmentalism, but he was unaware of any kind of religious beliefs. 'He never spoke religion with us,' Diana Banke said. Cassim's online posts include musings on religion, climate science, and advocacy for tolerance and peace, including a claim 'the Angel Gabriel appeared before me and gave me a message from Allah.' 'I'm really surprised that he would've done something like this,' Diana Banke said. His Facebook profile says Cassim attended high school in Lloydminster, Alta., before studying aviation at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. He also describes himself as the editor of a blog devoted to the impact of climate change on the Arctic. It includes hundreds of posts since 2011, many of them highly technical, with the latest entry made on Saturday. It is titled: 'Will humans go extinct soon?' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 17, 2025.
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
B.C. pilot charged with hijacking and terrorism over Vancouver flight
VANCOUVER - A man who allegedly seized a light aircraft in Victoria, setting off a security scare at Vancouver International Airport on Tuesday, has been charged with hijacking and terrorism. A spokeswoman for the Public Prosecution Service of Canada said Wednesday that a charge of hijacking had been filed in Richmond, B.C., constituting a 'terrorist activity' and a 'terrorist offence' under two sections of the Criminal Code. She provided a court file number that matches a case in B.C. provincial court involving a man named Shaheer Cassim. A man with the same name is a former commercial airline pilot based in Victoria who has previously been involved in climate activism, and social media photographs of that man resemble the person arrested on the runway at YVR. Landings at YVR had been halted for more than half an hour on Tuesday afternoon as the Cessna 172 circled at a low altitude in the airspace above the airport. In 2012, Cassim held a news conference in Victoria at the start of a cross-country bicycle trek to raise awareness of global warming. Cassim said at the time that he was a commercial pilot. He used to work for KD Air, a now-defunct airline that was based in Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island. The former owners, Lars and Diana Banke, sold the airline years ago. They said in an interview that Cassim was one of the smartest and best pilots they ever had, but that he believed the world was ending. Lars Banke estimated Cassim flew for KD Air for 'just over a year.' 'He was a good pilot,' Banke said, adding that he was only vaguely aware of the hijacking incident, having seen something on YouTube. 'He was really, really, smart,' he said. 'His intelligence was a problem.' Banke said Cassim got bored and left his pilot job to go to medical school. The couple described him as a caring person, but they hadn't known him to be religious. 'I would say he has a care for the planet,' Lars Banke said. 'He's in no way an evil person, anyway. I mean, he was gonna be a doctor ... and then he was gonna be a farmer because he thought the world was gonna end, so I mean he might not be the most stable.' The couple said they'd heard from Cassim about two years ago, getting a phone call about a potential visit, but nothing came of it and they hadn't heard from him since. The Cessna at the centre of Tuesday's scare had taken off just before 1 p.m. from Victoria airport, where a spokesman said the aircraft was operated by the Victoria Flying Club. Flight radar shows it flew straight to Vancouver's airport before circling for about 25 minutes. Police said it landed at YVR at about 1:45 p.m., and social media videos show a swarm of police vehicles closing in on the taxiing plane, before the bearded pilot emerges and walks backwards towards officers who train their weapons on him. Norad confirmed on Wednesday that it scrambled F-15 fighter jets in response to the alleged hijacking. A spokeswoman for the North American Aerospace Defence Command said additional F-18 fighters were also being readied to respond, but the Cessna landed before those planes were deployed. 'I can confirm that the civilian pilot landed his aircraft before the fighters intercepted it,' she said. 'So, an interception did not occur because of the aircraft landing.' RCMP have not disclosed a potential motive in the case, but a recorded conversation involving a Vancouver air traffic controller suggests the alleged hijacking may have been motivated by 'some type of protest.' In the conversation, which is part of an online archive of air traffic recordings, the grounded pilot of a commercial jet asks why his plane is being held at the gate. An unidentified air traffic controller responds that a Cessna is circling about 500 feet over the airport in an apparent protest and the situation could last 'a couple hours,' although the Cessna landed about 10 minutes later. The controller and the grounded pilot also discuss when such an incident last occurred, and one of them is heard saying 'maybe the '70s.' Another recording of a radio conversation between airport operations for arrivals and departures that occurred while the aircraft was circling above says the suspect 'expected to be arrested.' The incident resulted in what YVR called a 39-minute 'ground stop' for arrivals. Vancouver air-traffic control first mentioned a 'rogue aircraft' shortly after 1 p.m. on Tuesday, asking nearby aircraft to keep an eye out for the Cessna and to inform controllers of any need to 'manoeuvre as necessary.' The Victoria Flying Club said no details could be shared due to an active and ongoing investigation 'with numerous factors still being assessed.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2025.
