A Tropic Air flight from Corozal Town to San Pedro in Belize was hijacked by an American brandishing a knife this morning. He seized control of the small Caravan aircraft and held it “at the mercy” of his threats.
The morning flight carried 11 passengers, and shortly after takeoff, 49‑year‑old Californian Akinyela Sawa Taylor approached the cockpit with a knife and ordered the pilot to stay in the air until the aircraft ran out of fuel
The plane looped south toward Belize City, then out over Caye Caulker, Caye Chapel and San Pedro, before the airport became alerted to the crisis. Despite the threats, the pilot managed a safe unplanned landing in Belize City. Two passengers suffered knife wounds during the confrontation and were rushed to nearby hospitals; one remains in critical condition following surgery.
PASSENGER STABBED TRYING TO FIGHT PLANE HIJACKER
A domestic flight from San Pedro was hijacked by a passenger on board. The aircraft continues to move along the coast of Belize.
We are not sure what is the motive of the hijacker but we do now that one man was stabbed several… pic.twitter.com/mmeNWEodCQ
— Claudia Bryan (@ClaudiaBryan01) April 17, 2025
Here’s video from inside the Caravan that was sent to me by a reader:
Passengers on the aircraft report that a customer onboard confronted the hijacker as law enforcement approached the aircraft on the ground and fired a fatal shot into the perpetrator’s chest. According to official statements, Taylor resisted arrest and was shot by officers. Flights in Belize City were briefly suspended.
Tropic Air, Belize’s largest domestic carrier, acknowledged the incident and pledged full cooperation with a joint investigation by the Belize Police Department and the Department of Civil Aviation. Motive for the hijacking is unclear. The man arrived in Belize earlier this week as a tourist.
Here’s video from inside another aircraft being deplaned due to the hijacking:
And I didn’t have on the scene reporting by Tia Carrere on my bingo card.
The best result of Trump’s presidency/coup is the rest of the world now has a valid reason to show Americans how they aren’t wanted.
Gotta love a happy ending!
Time for his family to make $500K on GoFundMe, buy a new car, and move into a gated community..
“This does not sound like him. He was a good boy…”
Tia Carrere was hot in her prime!
@Ray. A coup eh? Easy on the meds amigo
Oof, those Cessna 208 are claustrophobic enough as it is. How traumatic. I feel for the other passengers and the crew.
@Ray — I’m no ‘fan’ of #45/47 or His policies, but this has nothing to do with Him. Most Americans are decent people. Let’s not needlessly disparage groups of people.
Wonder under which Presidency this gentleman was naturalized under?
@Coffee Please — #45/47 (I don’t use His name because it goes to ‘auto-moderation’ on this site) was indeed elected President in 2016 and 2024 (but not in 2020, He lost then–it was not ‘stolen’ either. However, some do reasonably consider January 6th, 2021, to be a failed ‘coup’ attempt, or even an ‘Insurrection,’ but alas, he was re-elected, so no further prosecution there.) His former and current administration are not ‘coups,’ unless @Ray knows something we don’t, though some would argue that He and His administration are currently abusing their power (I suppose the people in future elections, or the courts and/or the military, will ultimately decide that in the end, now won’t they?). Anyway, I’m all for facts and reason, even if we disagree on specific policy and methods. Alternatively, we could revert to banter, or just call each other silly names. Personally, I’m open to whatever. Let’s go!
@CHRIS — The guy’s dead. Which President someone is naturalized under makes no difference here. But, nice try, I guess.
Yikes, scary. Lot of stabby themed aviation news recently hope that trend stops…
I guess maybe they should start WMD screening for smaller flights (this is not currently done for JSX either). Takes very little time and would prevent this from happening.
Glad the perp was ultimately neutralized and won’t be a recidivist.
Guantánamo bay has a new guest that’s about to check in!
@Rozellev — “…fired a fatal shot into the perpetrator’s chest.” (He’s dead.) Also, these days, it’s less Cuba, more El Salvador…
Why is nobody asking “How the heck did J Random Passenger have a loaded firearm on board”??????????????????????????????????
The pax shot the perp. Killed him. WHY WAS HE ARMED? Also, I realize Belize is an LDC but… what was the pax charged with, or did he go on to “his final destination, wherever that may be”???
Can you possibly provide ANY LESS USEFUL INFORMATION?
So a guy with a knife and a guy with a gun got on an airplane. Start of a bad joke?
@Ehud Gavron — One more time: The perpetrator is dead.
Many sources are reporting on this story, but no one has officially identified how/why the other passenger (who shot the perpetrator) had a firearm on them.
I’d imagine since these are tiny propeller planes, the airline probably doesn’t even do much of a security check. They’ll probably want to change lax policy that after this (at least I hope so!)
According to Tropic Air’s website: “Due to the aircraft type we fly and its limited cabin space, we allow one small personal item per passenger to be carried on board. Examples of allowable personal items are bags such as a purse or a small backpack.” They don’t mention firearms.
Thank God he got on board with that gun. Too bad he didn’t get the other one. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
No, law enforcement shot him. Read the sentence again. I’ve been on those flights many times; and I seem to recall there was a magneto you walked through and the bags went through x-ray — in Belize City, not in the outstations (Corozal, San Pedro, Caye Caulker, et al). But my last trip was 10 years ago, so things may have changed.