MONTEGO BAY, St James

Members of the Montego Bay Community College (MBCC) are still trying to fathom what could have led 21-year-old Stephen Fray, a recent past student of that institution, to hijack a Canadian aeroplane at the Sangster International Airport here, Sunday night.

“He doesn’t talk. He can’t mash ants! So when a friend called to say Stephen hijacked a plane, I said it can’t be the Stephen I know,” said Arts student at MBCC who knew Fray from the days they used to sing on the Cornwall College choir. “I know he was undergoing stress which pushed him to the edge. But nobody could see him doing such a thing.”

A female MBCC student echoed similiar views.

“I met Stephen one day while I was hanging out at Bay West. He is someone I have spoken to on several occasions. He is a quiet, friendly person,” she agreed.

Philip Clarke, an lecturer in English at the MBCC who taught Fray in fourth form at the Cornwall College for boys, was equally baffled.

“I have not had any particular encounter with him to give me the idea that this was a part of his personality. I know him as a quiet, reserved individual; well behaved, respectable and polite. I did not see that coming at all,” said a perplexed Clarke. “I can’t express how shocked I was when I saw the picture.”

The English lecturer said that he is desperate to speak with Fray, whom during his school days seemed to seek to dodge the limelight.

“He never spoke in class. He was somebody who would prefer to talk to you after class. I would love to have a word with him. My students are persons to whom I relate. I am especially interested in quiet students in my class because I was one such student so I know there are times when things are on your mind but you don’t feel comfortable expressing them,” Clarke told the Observer West.

Another male student who claimed that he visits the same haunts that the young hijacker used to, explained that Fray was stressed. He alleged that a friend of Fray’s was murdered last week. This, after the young hijacker’s recent painful break-up with his girlfriend. He also said that Fray did not handle the separation of his parents some years ago.

Yesterday, a female student underscored the need for the incident to drive home the fact that emotional problems should be addressed.

“I think that this is a wake-up call for people to realise that we need to pay attention to the emotional aspects of people and I think people should not take this with sheer ignorance. We need to realise that something obviously was wrong. The wider public needs to realise that the youths need to be loved,” she said.