Sussex student’s comment sparks bomb scare (From The Argus)
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Sussex student’s comment sparks bomb scare
11:20am Monday 7th January 2013 in News By Peter Truman
A teenager brought an airport to a halt after sparking a bomb scare.
The 17-year-old student from Sussex was travelling with his family from Newquay in Cornwall to Gatwick airport when he made a remark about how his granddad, an 84-year-old retired doctor, should be the one being searched.
Security staff acted on the comment and the family were detained. To make matters worse, a swab sample of the granddad’s shoe – taken during the search – came back positive for peroxide, during the incident on Friday, December 28, at about 2.30pm.
After an extensive search it transpired the sample is likely to have been some residue bleach.
But the scare prompted all roads to the Cornish airport to be closed as a precaution.
A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: “Any suspicion we have that a passenger may endanger an aircraft or its passengers is taken very seriously.
'Extremely vigilant'
“Security staff at the airport were extremely vigilant and we closed roads around the facility for a short time while the incident was going on.
“Any travellers should be well aware of their obligations as a passenger and offenders will be dealt with robustly.”
The suspect and his family were only allowed on their way once police were satisfied that they posed no risk to the public, and were obliged to buy replacement tickets from the airline which agreed to them flying.
The boy was handed an £80 fine for wasting police time.
It is not the first time someone from Sussex has been involved in a bomb hoax.
Bomb threat
Mathew Davis, of Commonwealth Drive in Three Bridges, wrote a bomb threat on a British Airways jet’s toilet door mid-flight so he could “save the day”.
The 22-year-old crew member hoped the stunt would mean he would be |portrayed as a hero and get a promotion.
But instead it cost him his job and he was jailed for six months in August last year.
And in 2011, Harry Greer, from Crowborough, was jailed after he dialled 999 to report a hoax bomb in a railway tunnel.
Emergency services raced to the scene and searched for more than five hours, during which time rail services in East Sussex were severely delayed.
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Comments(19)
davyboy
says...
11:37am Mon 7 Jan 13
Fercri Sakes
says...
11:58am Mon 7 Jan 13
Hove Actually wrote:Exactly. The terrorists aim is to get us to change our behaviour through fear. Seems like they're winning if things like this are happening.
The 17-year-old student from Sussex was travelling with his family from Newquay in Cornwall to Gatwick airport when he made a remark about how his granddad, an 84-year-old retired doctor, should be the one being searched
If this is all he said then we really need to take stock of what our fight on terrorism has cost us
And funny to read two comments below yours attacking a 17 year old boy for his comments, although it's not very clear what exactly was said to whom.
Hopefully this post wont result in a knock on the door from the plod telling me I've broken some post 9/11 law and then a long spell in Belmarsh.
Bobbin Robin
says...
12:01pm Mon 7 Jan 13
It's one thing being suitably vigilant about real security threats,as most reasonable people understand nowadays. It's quite another 'doing a PC Angel/Hot Fuzz' on someone ill-advised enough to let loose an admittedly asinine comment where/when they should know better,
'Security staff at the airport were extremely vigilant..Any travellers should be well aware of their obligations as a passenger and offenders will be dealt with robustly.'
Translation:
We'll get sued and/or fired unless we ALWAYS over-react. It's absolutely your problem, not ours, if we close down an airport. (Fun as well, using all our cool guns and car sirens). Blam, blam!
gaz scott
says...
12:10pm Mon 7 Jan 13
willy harris
says...
12:26pm Mon 7 Jan 13
willy harris
says...
12:27pm Mon 7 Jan 13
davyboy wrote:i agree.
how stupid can some people be. any remark, however trivial, will be taken seriously at any airport. this 'kid', and thats all he is, should have the full extent of the law thrown at him. this sort of stupidity is what causes delays to others.
Somethingsarejustwrong
says...
1:05pm Mon 7 Jan 13
gaz scott wrote:Ah but some just can't help but make ridiculous comments regardless of circumstances and need........Bit like you really.
Real terrorists are very clever and know they have to resist the temptation to say something that might draw attention to themselves. Sneaky.
LOL
gaz scott
says...
1:17pm Mon 7 Jan 13
SomethingsarejustwroDid the comment make a whooshing sound as it flew over your head?
ng wrote:
gaz scott wrote:Ah but some just can't help but make ridiculous comments regardless of circumstances and need........Bit like you really.
Real terrorists are very clever and know they have to resist the temptation to say something that might draw attention to themselves. Sneaky.
LOL
Morpheus
says...
1:56pm Mon 7 Jan 13
getThisCoalitionOut
says...
2:30pm Mon 7 Jan 13
A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: “Any suspicion we have that a passenger may endanger an aircraft or its passengers is taken very seriously.
DEAR ARGUS STAFF
It's got Gatwick airport near to the beginning of this story and then the above appears???????
Has Gatwick moved?
I thought East Sussex police would cover Gatwick airport?
There are some very strange things going on AND it's not even April 1st
Colonel Angus
says...
2:45pm Mon 7 Jan 13
monkeymoo
says...
3:06pm Mon 7 Jan 13
Boy says " you should search my granddad".....
Security team searches granddad....
Security team find POSITIVE READING for peroxide......
Boy then fined £80.
How the hell is that possible? Surely everyone did their job properly, and the boy was correct. Why did he get fined?
lol.
Sarah Booker Lewis
says...
3:27pm Mon 7 Jan 13
getThisCoalitionOut wrote:He was returning home from Newquay to Gatwick. It states this early in the story. At no point does it say the incident occurred at Gatwick.
But the scare prompted all roads to the Cornish airport to be closed as a precaution.
A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: “Any suspicion we have that a passenger may endanger an aircraft or its passengers is taken very seriously.
DEAR ARGUS STAFF
It's got Gatwick airport near to the beginning of this story and then the above appears???????
Has Gatwick moved?
I thought East Sussex police would cover Gatwick airport?
There are some very strange things going on AND it's not even April 1st
Somethingsarejustwrong
says...
9:26pm Mon 7 Jan 13
gaz scott wrote:How refreshing
SomethingsarejustwroDid the comment make a whooshing sound as it flew over your head?
ng wrote:
gaz scott wrote:Ah but some just can't help but make ridiculous comments regardless of circumstances and need........Bit like you really.
Real terrorists are very clever and know they have to resist the temptation to say something that might draw attention to themselves. Sneaky.
LOL
trystero
says...
11:03am Tue 8 Jan 13
Colonel Angus wrote:I agree.
I blame the parents.
I also blame the teachers, the students (that's ALL students, not just this one), the unions, the cyclists, the travellers, the squatters and the "immigrants".
Oh, and The Greens. For everything.
Weirdorama
says...
11:40am Tue 8 Jan 13
gaz scott wrote:Lets face it, as a 17 year old there isn't going to be many things as funny as nearly getting your grandfather arrested on suspicion of terrorism.
Real terrorists are very clever and know they have to resist the temptation to say something that might draw attention to themselves. Sneaky.
monkeymoo
says...
12:07pm Tue 8 Jan 13
He suspected someone....
He told the security staff....
They searched the man....
They found positive readings for explosives.....
Why was he (the student) then fined?
Surely everyone involved carried out their jobs perfectly well. The student should be commended for not allowing a terrorist (with explosives) onto a flight!
Thumper Hove
says...
2:50pm Tue 8 Jan 13
Maybe the authorities were being overcautious, but surely better to be safe than sorry, especially as there were traces of chemicals found?
Hove Actually says...
11:31am Mon 7 Jan 13
If this is all he said then we really need to take stock of what our fight on terrorism has cost us