British ColumbiaShaheer Cassim allegedly threatened a flight instructor in Victoria, commandeered a small plane and flew it to Vancouver International Airport. Shaheer Cassim is charged with hijacking and damaging or interfering with navigation equipmentKarin Larsen · CBC News · Posted: Jul 21, 2025 9:10 PM EDT | Last Updated: 11 hours agoShaheer Cassim appeared by video in Richmond Provicial Court on Tuesday. (sketch by Felicity Don/CBC)The man accused of hijacking a plane and triggering a security scare at Vancouver International Airport last week appeared briefly in court Tuesday morning, where his legal counsel requested and was granted an adjournment to next week to give them time to prepare a bail application.Shaheer Cassim is charged with one count of hijacking and one count of damaging or interfering with a navigation system. He was arrested July 15 after allegedly threatening a flight instructor at Victoria International Airport, seizing control of a small Cessna 172 plane, flying across the Salish Sea and circling the plane over Vancouver’s airport before landing and being arrested by police. WATCH | Ideological motive suspected in alleged hijacking: New details emerge around man charged in alleged plane hijacking in B.C.Shaheer Cassim has been charged with one count of hijacking after an incident that saw flights grounded at Vancouver’s airport for a little under an hour. Police have said the suspect had “an ideological motive to disrupt airspace.” A Facebook profile of a man with the same name that lists him as holding a commercial pilot’s licence and having worked on Vancouver Island makes religious references and describes himself as both a “Messiah” and as someone “sent by Allah” to save the world from climate change. Police say the 39-year-old had an “ideological motive to disrupt airspace.” They have not specified what the ideological motive was.Cassim attended Tuesday’s hearing in Richmond Provincial Court via video link from the Surrey Pretrial Centre dressed in orange prison garb. The hearing lasted about three minutes, and he did not speak other than to state his name when asked. He was ordered to remain in custody and appear by video once again for his next court appearance in Richmond set for July 29 at 10 a.m. Both charges carry the potential of a maximum sentence of life in prison if found guilty. A man with the same name has a social media profile where he lists himself as a former commercial airline pilot.A plane surrounded by police vehicles is towed off the runway at Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, B.C., on July 15, 2025. In addition to hijacking, Shaheer Cassim has now been charged with damaging or interfering with a navigation facility. (Ethan Cairns/CBC)The day before the alleged hijacking, the man posted on social media that he was a “messenger of Allah.””I am the Messiah sent to save humanity from climate change and usher in an era of world peace,” the post reads.The alleged hijacking led to nine flights being diverted from Vancouver International Airport, and flights were grounded at the airport for just under 40 minutes in the middle of the day.U.S. fighter jets were scrambled in response to the alleged hijacking, though Cassim was ultimately arrested before they intercepted the plane at Vancouver airport.WATCH | U.S. fighter jets scrambled after alleged hijacking: Why only U.S. fighter jets responded to the alleged plane hijacking in Vancouver American fighter jets were quick to respond when a small plane was allegedly hijacked and landed at the Vancouver International Airport on Tuesday. But why weren’t Canadian jets sent instead? Liam Britten explains. ABOUT THE AUTHORKarin Larsen is a former Olympian and award winning sports broadcaster who covers news and sports for CBC Vancouver.With files from the CBC’s Akshay Kulkarni and Canadian Press
Alleged B.C. plane hijacker Shaheer Cassim makes brief court appearance
