An Ethiopian Airlines co- pilot who hijacked his own flight to seek asylum in Switzerland has reportedly surrendered to police at Geneva airport.
Post landing the aircraft, the Hailemedhin Abera Tegegn, 31, jumped out of a cockpit window and got off the plane with the help of an emergency rope and ran to the police claiming that he was the hijacker.
Tegegn said that he hijacked the plane because he wanted asylum as he was not safe in his own country, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
The airliner took over the plane after the pilot left the cockpit to use the washroom, following which he sent a coded message announcing that he had hijacked the plane.
Meanwhile, a Geneva prosecutor said that the co-pilot would be charged with taking hostages, and if found guilty, he would face up to 20 years in jail.
