ST. LOUIS (CN) - A man suspected of stealing an airplane in Canada and flying it to Missouri in hopes of committing "suicide by fighter plane" should stay in jail because he is a flight risk, federal prosecutors say. Adam Dylan Leon, 31, of Thunder Bay, Ontario, faces charges of interstate transportation of stolen property and illegally entering the United States, said assistant U.S. Attorney D. John Sauer, who seeking a grand jury indictment.
Leon is in jail in St. Louis. Officials said Leon has acknowledged was trying to commit suicide when he took the plane and flew it into the United States. Leon allegedly said he hoped U.S. fighter jets would shoot him down.
Leon flew over seven states before nearly running out of gas and landing on a highway in Ellsinore, Mo., 160 miles south of St. Louis. The Missouri Highway Patrol arrested him at an Ellsinore grocery store.
Authorities say Leon stole the plane from Confederate College, a flight school where he was a student. Leon's flight initially raised concerns about terrorism.
Leon faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted and would serve his time in the U.S. before being deported to Canada.
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