Divinely inspired hijacker's 'bomb' was can of fruit juice

A Bolivian religious fanatic briefly hijacked a plane in Mexico City by claiming a can of juice was a bomb.

Special forces police stormed the jet yesterday and released all 103 passengers and crew unharmed.

After the bible-carrying hijacker said he had accomplices police handcuffed three other men, who were later released.

The hijacker was named as Jose Flores, 44, who claimed he had had a divine revelation.

As Aeromexico Flight 576 was landing in Mexico City after flying from the beach resort of Cancun, he stood up and showed his "bomb", which he later described as "a juice can...with some little lights I attached", to a flight attendant.

He ordered pilot Ricardo Rios to circle the city but the plane did not have enough fuel.

Flores later said yesterday's date - 9/9/09 - was the satanic number 666 turned upside down, and added "Christ is coming soon".

The suspect's wife, Elizabeth Melgar, told W Radio that Flores "always told me that he was looking for a way to attract the attention of the media...he always told me that he was waiting for a signal from God to do something".

Public safety secretary Genaro Garcia Luna said Flores was a drug addict who was convicted of armed robbery in Bolivia, and has lived in Mexico for 17 years. Flores described himself as a pastor who had gone to Cancun to preach.