ST. LOUIS—A 31-year-old Canadian man has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for stealing a plane in Canada and flying over three states before landing along a dark southern Missouri highway.

Adam Dylan Leon had admitted in August to the charges he'd faced: interstate transportation of a stolen aircraft, importation of a stolen aircraft and illegal entry.

Leon was born Yavuz Berke in Turkey before moving to Canada, changing his name, and becoming a naturalized citizen. He admitted that on April 6, he stole a four-seat Cessna 172 from his Thunder Bay, Ontario, flight school and crossed the U.S. border. Leon landed the plane more than seven hours later on a road off of Highway 60 near Ellsinore, Mo.

He told the court he suffered from depression.


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