U.S. Embassy Responds Briefly to Plane Hijacking Incident

It’s been a week since American national Akinyela Taylor hijacked a plane and stabbed three people on board, sending shockwaves through the country.  Since the incident, there has been little information from the United States Embassy regarding Taylor’s background or any further details on his visit to Belize. Today, however, the U.S. Embassy in Belmopan responded to a request from our newsroom to provide a comment.  The response was extremely brief, and would only say, quote, “The U.S. Embassy underscores the United States’ strong security cooperation with Belize, which supports the safety of American visitors, U.S. citizens who call the Jewel their home, and the Belizean people. While we are unable to comment further on the ongoing case, we continue to support Belizean authorities to bring closure to the case and everyone affected.”  End of quote.