MEXICO CITY ( CNN ) -- A 44-year-old Bolivian drug addict and alcoholic who describes himself as a church minister was the sole person responsible for the brief hijacking Wednesday of a commercial jetliner , a Mexican official said . Military personnel surround a hijacked Aeromexico jet after it landed Wednesday in Mexico City . The suspect , Josmar Flores Pereira , told authorities he hijacked the Boeing 737 jet because the date -- September 9 , 2009 , or 9/9/9 , and 666 reversed -- held some significance for him , said Genaro Garcia Luna , the secretary for public safety . `` He said that because of that divine reference , he wanted to alert Mexico City of an earthquake , '' Garcia told reporters . Flanked by two police officers , the suspect -- wearing a white shirt and blue jeans -- was then paraded in front of the news media . Chewing gum , he smiled . `` Christ is coming soon , '' he told reporters before being escorted off . He said that he had attached colored lights to a can and that there had been no bomb . The hijacker took control of Aeromexico Flight 576 as the jet flew from the resort town of Cancun , telling a flight attendant he was one of three hijackers , Garcia said . Watch CNN 's Rick Sanchez report on the hijacking as it unfolded » . He said a cardboard box he had contained a bomb , and threatened to blow it up if his demand to speak to President Felipe Calderon was not met , Garcia said . Calderon was in the presidential hangar in the airport preparing to depart when the incident began , leading him to cancel his planned flight , CNN affiliate TV Azteca reported . The hijacking apparently went unnoticed by many of those aboard the plane , which landed five minutes ahead of scheduled and was moved to a remote area of the airport . Passengers , clutching their hand luggage , walked from the plane and down a moveable stairway onto the tarmac , where they got into buses . Pamela Cheatham , who said she was on the flight en route to Colorado , told CNN that nothing appeared amiss until the plane did not go directly to the terminal . Instead , the pilot announced that , for security purposes , the plane was gong to have to sit on the tarmac for a few minutes , she said . `` But when we saw the SWAT team and guys with the guns on both sides of the airline , we knew something was up , '' she said . Moments later , the suspect and several other people were taken into custody , TV Azteca said . The package turned out not to contain explosives , the station said . Garcia said the other people who were detained turned out not to be involved . Watch Aeromexico passengers being released » . A U.S. law enforcement official familiar with the situation said preliminary information indicated there were 112 passengers aboard the plane , all from Mexico , the United States or France . `` The flight was very tranquil , '' said Marisa Lopez , a passenger who was seated in Row 24 with her baby . She said the only thing that caught her attention was the large number of emergency vehicles that were lined up along the tarmac when they arrived , five minutes ahead of schedule . `` Really , it was all very peaceful , '' she said . `` We saw nothing . '' Others were more aware of what was going on . `` It was very difficult , but the pilot told us to remain calm , '' said another passenger , who added that many of the passengers were families returning from vacation in Cancun . Read timeline of events » . The woman said the hijacker never spoke to them during the 45 minutes they were held . `` We were scared , '' said another woman . `` But it seemed like things got under control when we came down . We were immediately surrounded , when we landed , by federal police . '' Flores ' wife , speaking with CNN by telephone from their home in the southern Mexican city of Oaxaca , said her husband had been looking for a way to get his message about God to the news media . `` He never wanted to hurt anyone , '' said Elisa Melgar , 38 , the mother of their three sons and his wife of 18 years . `` As his wife , I support him , '' she said , adding her husband had not touched alcohol or drugs for the past 17 years . `` He 's a man who was transformed by the power of God . '' A video posted on YouTube shows the suspect singing that God had saved him from a life of drug addiction .
Official says Bolivian man , 44 , solely responsible for Aeromexico hijacking . Suspect told authorities the date -- 9/9/09 -- was significant , official says . 112 passengers were aboard when plane was hijacked . Plane landed in Mexico City after being held by hijackers for nearly two hours before it crashed into a mountain near Los Cabos.