US citizen killed after hijacking small plane in Belize

A US citizen hijacked a small Tropic Air plane in Belize on Thursday at knifepoint, injuring three others before being shot and killed, police said.

The assailant pulled a knife while the plane was in air, demanding the domestic flight take him out of the country, Police Commissioner Chester Williams told journalists.

The hijacker was identified as US citizen Akinyela Sawa Taylor, Williams said, adding that it appeared he was a military veteran.

The plane circled the airspace between northern Belize and capital Belize City as the hijacking was underway, and began to run dangerously low on fuel, the police commissioner said.

Taylor stabbed three people on board, according to Williams, including the pilot and a passenger who shot Taylor with a licensed firearm as the plane landed outside Belize City. 

That passenger was rushed to the hospital, as was Taylor, who died from the gunshot wound.

Williams said that it was unclear how Taylor boarded the plane with a knife, though he acknowledged that the country's smaller airstrips lacked security to fully search passengers.

The attacker had been denied entry to the country over the weekend, according to the police. The plane had been due to fly the short route from Corozal near the Mexican border to San Pedro, off the coast. Police said it was unclear how Taylor reached Corozal.

Belizean authorities have reached out to the US embassy in the country for aid in investigating the incident. Luke Martin, public affairs officer for the embassy, told journalists that it had no details on Taylor's background or motivation so far.

According to information released by the airport, Taylor was a teacher in the United States. He was listed online as previously being a football coach at the McCluer North High School in Florissant, Missouri.

An employee at the school told Reuters that Taylor did not currently work there.