Bomb Hoax Grounds Air India Flight: Marketing Executive Arrested

A 30-year-old marketing executive named Suhaib, unhappy with poor service, made a bomb threat to an Air India flight bound for London. The threat turned out to be a hoax. Thorough security checks were conducted, and Suhaib was apprehended and booked for criminal intimidation and other offences.

A bomb threat to a London-bound Air India flight on Tuesday turned out to be a hoax. Authorities apprehended Suhaib, a 30-year-old marketing executive, who is suspected of making the call when he and his family checked in to board the same AI 149 flight, an official said.

According to police, Suhaib made the threat out of frustration over the poor service he experienced on an earlier Air India flight. Suhaib, settled in London, was on vacation in Kerala.

Suhaib was booked under IPC sections 506 (criminal intimidation), 118(b) (knowingly spreading rumors or giving false alarms to mislead essential services), and 120(o) (causing nuisance and public order violations). He has been taken to court for remand, informed the Nedumbassery police station officer.

The bomb threat, received by Air India's call center in Mumbai and promptly communicated to Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) at 1.22 AM, triggered extensive security measures. A Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) was convened, airlines' inline baggage screening systems were employed, and the aircraft was moved to an isolated parking point for detailed scrutiny.

Following thorough checks, the aircraft was cleared, and AI 149 departed for its destination at 1.25 PM, after a slight delay from its original schedule of 11.50 AM. Efforts to trace the caller led investigators to Suhaib, who, along with his family, was intercepted during check-in by Airport Security Group (ASG) personnel. He has since been handed over to the police for further legal action, confirmed a spokesperson from Cochin Airport.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)