SWEDEN: A Swede arrested last week with a gun in his carry-on luggage was planning to hijack the Britain-bound Ryanair aircraft, the prosecutor in the case argued yesterday as a court remanded him in custody for two weeks.
Prosecutor Mr Thomas Haeggström said that Mr Kerim Chatty (29), was suspected of "preparing a hijacking, air traffic sabotage, or airport sabotage".
The prosecutor also asked that he be held for violating Swedish gun laws.
The court last night ordered Mr Chatty be held in custody while police investigate and prepare formal charges.
Mr Haeggström told the court there was a risk Mr Chatty would try to evade justice, destroy evidence and continue his criminal activities.
Mr Chatty was arrested on Thursday by police at the small Vaesteraas airport after a 6.5 millimetre pistol with three or four rounds of ammunition was found in his bag during checks ahead of a Ryanair flight to England.
Born in Sweden to a Tunisian father and a Swedish mother, Mr Chatty addressed the court only to confirm his presence, before his lawyer Mr Nils Uggla argued his client had no plans to hijack the airplane. "He contests all the suspicions against him apart from the weapons violation. He admits that there is probable cause for suspicion of weapons violation," Mr Uggla told the court. He told reporters his client had an explanation for why he was carrying the gun, but that he could not discuss it with reporters because he was under a gag order.
Swedish newspaper Expressen quoted Mr Chatty as telling investigators: "I took that weapon to protect myself because I felt threatened. If I had intended to hijack the plane, I would certainly not have hidden a pistol in a bag of toiletries." Mr Haeggström argued that unless Mr Chatty was detained "he could flee, continue his criminal activities and try to destroy evidence and interfere with the investigation".
Mr Chatty, who according to Mr Uggla converted to Islam "a few years ago", has a criminal record including theft and assault and is reported to have had dealings with the Swedish underworld.
Swedish prosecutors have been trying to determine whether Mr Chatty has any ties to terrorist organisations, as the motive for the alleged hijacking remains unclear.
The incident occurred shortly before the first anniversary of the September 11th attacks in the US.
Media reports at the weekend said Mr Chatty had planned to crash the plane into a US embassy in Europe, although Swedish police quickly dismissed those claims. However, Swedish intelligence service Saepo said the suspect had attended a pilot's course in the United States, while a senior figure at the flight school said Mr Chatty had taken lessons in 1996 and 1997 but had been expelled before completing the course.