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Bangladesh Biman 'hijack' attempt: Suspect apprehended

Just Earth News | @justearthnews | 24 Feb 2019

Bangladesh Biman 'hijack' attempt: Suspect apprehended

Dhaka/Chittagong: Ending a tense evening, Bangladeshi security forces on Sunday apprehended an individual who allegedly tried to hijack a Bangladesh Biman flight at Chittagong airport.

The national flag carrier bound for Dubai made an emergency landing and the passengers safely evacuated. The plane was put under cordon on the tarmac, reported The Daily Star.

According to the Bangladesh newspaper report, police and other law enforcers have been refusing to confirm or deny if it was a case of hijacking and have been terming it an “untoward incident”.

Civil Aviation Secretary Mohibul Haque told The Daily Star a cabin crew member raised alarm finding the behaviour of a passenger suspicious.

“The pilot made an emergency landing. All the passengers were evacuated. The suspect has been apprehended and taken into custody,” he told the newspaper.

Chowdhury M Ziaul Kabir, director of flight safety of Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh, told The Daily Star that the suspect could be “mentally imbalanced”.

The Boeing 737-800 aircraft was scheduled to fly to Dubai from Dhaka via Chittagong.

The aircraft had 142 passengers on board.


Image: Sidhant Sibal Twitter page