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Bid to Hijack Dubai-bound Bangladesh Plane Foiled, Suspect Shot Dead, Says Army

Bangladesh commandos stormed a passenger jet in the country’s southeast Sunday and shot dead an armed man who allegedly tried to hijack the Dubai-bound flight.

Dhaka: Bangladesh commandos stormed a passenger jet in the country’s southeast Sunday and shot dead an armed man who allegedly tried to hijack the Dubai-bound flight, an army official said.

The suspect, described by officials as a 25-year-old Bangladeshi man, was shot as special forces rushed the plane after it landed safely in Chittagong.

The 148 passengers and crew aboard the Bangladesh Biman flight BG147 were all rescued unharmed, officials said.

But the suspected hijacker was injured and died shortly after being arrested, army spokesman Major General Motiur Rahman told reporters.

"He is a Bangladeshi. We found a pistol from him and nothing else," Rahman said.

All the passengers aboard were evacuated after the airport was sealed of by Army, Navy and elite police.

Air Vice Marshall Mofid, who goes by one name, said he then kept the accused man busy talking on the phone while special forces units prepared for the dramatic raid.

"He demanded to speak to our Prime Minister (Sheikh Hasina)," Mofid said.

"He claimed he had a pistol, but we are not sure yet whether it is an actual gun or a fake." 

The country’s civil aviation chief, Nayeem Hasan, earlier said the suspect had claimed to have a bomb aboard the flight.

"From the talks and dialogue we have with him, it seems he is psychologically deranged," Hasan said after the man was arrested.