Man who tried to divert Mexican plane to US says he was threatened by criminals – NBC Los Angeles

A passenger on a domestic flight in Mexico who tried to forcibly divert a plane to the United States said he was threatened by criminals who had kidnapped one of his relatives, authorities said.

Mexico’s Ministry of Public Security said late Sunday the man was arrested by National Guard officers in the western city of Guadalajara, where the flight was diverted after the incident.

Videos posted on social media showed other passengers overpowering the man on a Volaris airline flight from downtown Leon in Guanajuato state to the border city of Tijuana on Sunday.

“Airline staff said the attacker said a close relative of his had been kidnapped and that when the flight took off from Leon, he received a death threat if he traveled to Tijuana,” the agency said in a statement .

The state of Guanajuato has long been dominated by rival drug cartels and has the highest number of murders of any state in Mexico.

Videos appeared to show the man lunging toward one of the plane’s doors in what may have been an attempt to open it mid-flight before other passengers fought him and subdued him. Officials gave only the man’s first name and age, 31, and said the other passengers continued on to Tijuana.

Volaris Airlines said in a statement on X that the crew managed to restrain him and that everyone on board the flight was safe. Volaris said it became plaintiff to ensure the passenger faced the full force of the law.

Attempts to divert or hijack aircraft were extremely rare in Mexico. In 2009, a religious fanatic from Bolivia briefly hijacked a passenger plane from the seaside resort of Cancun as it landed in Mexico City. All passengers and crew were released unharmed.