A father in a wheelchair and his son hijacked a Colombian airliner, but peacefully surrendered five hours later after allowing the crew and passengers to exit the plane, authorities said.
The freed hostages told reporters the elder hijacker said he had been partially paralyzed by a police bullet during a raid on his house some 14 years ago and had unsuccessfully sought compensation.
Senator Carlos Moreno, who helped negotiate an end to the hijacking on Monday, said a 100 million peso (US$43,000) check was handed to the older hijacker, but the government would not honor it.
The Aires airliner had departed the southern city of Florencia when the two men commandeered it, said General Edgar Lesmez, the chief of the Colombian Air Force. The hijackers had managed to smuggle two grenades onto the plane, Moreno said.
The plane landed in Bogota, the flight's original destination, but at a military airfield next to the capital's civilian El Dorado Airport.
There were 20 passengers and at least four crew members aboard the plane when it was hijacked. Among them was a US citizen, said a US official in Bogota.
Also on board was Colombian Congressman Antonio Serrano, his assistant, Consuelo Barragan, told RCN television.
Shortly after landing, the hijackers allowed women passengers and two babies to exit the plane, while a Roman Catholic priest was permitted to come on board to negotiate. At least two government officials later boarded the aircraft to talk to the hijackers.
Over the next several hours while the twin-propeller plane stood on the tarmac, the remaining passengers were released. After a five-hour standoff, the two hijackers surrendered and came down from the plane. The crew members also exited the plane at the same time.
Authorities initially identified the hijackers as Luis Ramirez, about 42 years old, and his son Linsen Ramirez, about 22, but later said the elder man's name was Porfirio Ramirez.
General Alberto Ruiz, chief of operations of the Colombian National Police, said the two hijackers did not appear to belong to any of Colombia's illegal armed groups.
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