Sunday, May 10, 2026
ADVT 
National

Lawyers for alleged B.C. hijacker get more time to prepare bail application

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 18 Aug, 2025 11:07 AM
  • Lawyers for alleged B.C. hijacker get more time to prepare bail application

The man accused of hijacking a plane and triggering a security scare at Vancouver International Airport last month appeared briefly at a provincial court in Richmond, B.C., where his lawyers were granted an adjournment.

Shaheer Cassim attended the court virtually from Surrey Pretrial Centre wearing an orange sweatsuit.

He acknowledged he could see and hear the judge, and sat with his hands on his knees throughout the short video appearance, which lasted less than five minutes.

An articling student representing Cassim's defence lawyer, Kevin Westell, asked the court for a two-week adjournment as they continue to prepare a bail application.

The agent confirmed Cassim had agreed to remain in custody until his next appearance, which the judge scheduled for Sept. 2.

Cassim is a former commercial pilot who faces charges for allegedly taking a small aircraft from Victoria's airport on July 15 and flying it over the Vancouver airport before he was arrested upon landing.

The 39-year-old has been in custody at the pretrial facility in Surrey since his arrest and his court files have been placed under publication bans. 

He's been charged with hijacking, which is an offence constituting terrorism, and with damaging or interfering with a navigation system.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

MORE National ARTICLES

Gang police allege Vancouver man ran 'sophisticated' gun importation scheme

Gang police allege Vancouver man ran 'sophisticated' gun importation scheme
A 24-year-old Vancouver man faces several charges after investigators dismantled what they say was a "sophisticated" gun importation operation. The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit says the charges come after an investigation that began in June 2023 when packages with gun parts were "intercepted at the border." 

Gang police allege Vancouver man ran 'sophisticated' gun importation scheme

B.C. shuts door on secondary-suite incentive program over 'uncertain financial times'

B.C. shuts door on secondary-suite incentive program over 'uncertain financial times'
The British Columbia government says it is cancelling an incentive program meant to entice more homeowners to build secondary suites, saying the decision is "due to uncertain financial times."  The government says in a statement that the pilot program won't accept applications after March 31. 

B.C. shuts door on secondary-suite incentive program over 'uncertain financial times'

Ottawa condemns China for executing Canadians as Beijing points to drug crime

Ottawa condemns China for executing Canadians as Beijing points to drug crime
Global Affairs Canada and the Chinese embassy both declined to say how many Canadians were executed or report the names of those killed. Ottawa did confirm they did not include Abbotsford, B.C. native Robert Lloyd Schellenberg, who was sentenced to death for drug smuggling by a Chinese court in 2019.

Ottawa condemns China for executing Canadians as Beijing points to drug crime

Ottawa provides $20M for B.C.'s forest sector amid softwood duties, trade war

Ottawa provides $20M for B.C.'s forest sector amid softwood duties, trade war
The federal government is providing about $20 million in funding to support British Columbia's forestry sector, part of Ottawa's effort to bolster the economy amid the Canada-U. S. trade war. Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson says it's more important than ever to support the sector, which is subject to American duties on softwood lumber and now faces the additional threat of steep tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Ottawa provides $20M for B.C.'s forest sector amid softwood duties, trade war

Commercial truck hits B.C. highway overpass, losing lumber load and snarling traffic

Commercial truck hits B.C. highway overpass, losing lumber load and snarling traffic
British Columbia's Highway Patrol says another commercial truck has hit an overpass in Metro Vancouver, causing no visible damage, but snarling traffic on Wednesday. Police say a load of lumber the tractor trailer was hauling along Highway 99 hit the Blundell Road overpass.

Commercial truck hits B.C. highway overpass, losing lumber load and snarling traffic

Consumers could find 'meaningful savings' as carbon price ends: Desjardins

Consumers could find 'meaningful savings' as carbon price ends: Desjardins
Canadians can expect to feel the absence of the consumer carbon price at the pumps immediately but it may take longer to notice a difference in the price of other goods, a new report released Wednesday suggests. The analysis by Desjardins Economics comes less than a week after Prime Minister Mark Carney and his new Liberal cabinet ordered that the consumer levy be set to zero on April 1.

Consumers could find 'meaningful savings' as carbon price ends: Desjardins