A passenger who forced an international flight to return to Sydney due to alleged bomb threats will make a bid for release a day after he refused to appear in court.
Muhammad Arif, 45, has been charged with one count of making a false statement about a threat to damage an aircraft and failing to comply with cabin crew safety instructions.
He is due to appear at Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday via video link, when his lawyers expect to file an application for his release.
The Canberra man, who has been in custody since his arrest, was initially scheduled to face court yesterday, but he would not leave his police cell.
Magistrate Greg Grogin said officers would need to extract Arif if he were to appear in court and they would not force him out.
Arif’s lawyer Mostafa Daoudie said his client had “serious mental health issues” and did not seem to understand the situation he was in.
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His legal team is also expected to file a mental health application on Wednesday.
Arif was arrested at Sydney International Airport after flight MH122 returned on Monday.
The plane had taken off about 1pm when the 45-year-old allegedly began yelling, making references to Islam and gesturing at a backpack he was wearing on his chest.
The plane safely returned to Sydney nearly three hours later before a long standoff ensued on the tarmac.
The 194 passengers and five crew were eventually evacuated from the A330 aircraft and taken to the terminal.
