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PRAGUE (AP) — A Prague court has handed a 30 month prison sentence to a Russian who forced a passenger plane to make an emergency landing by claiming he was carrying a bomb.
Yevgeny Dagayev, who has changed his surname to Rotshtein, tried to break into the cockpit of the Aeroflot Airbus A320 from Moscow to Geneva in the 2006 incident. Apparently drunk, he demanded a change of route to Cairo but was subdued by people on board, and the plane made an emergency landing in Prague, authorities said.
No explosives were found. Spokeswoman Marketa Puci confirmed Monday's ruling by the Municipal Court.
The 40-year-old Rotshtein, who pleaded not guilty, still can appeal. Last year, he was extradited from Britain to face trial in the Czech Republic.
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