A man who was running late for a flight from London’s Gatwick Airport attempted to delay his plane’s takeoff by calling in a fake bomb threat, Reuters reports.
According to the publication, Jacob Meir Abdellak, a French librarian who lives in East London, called police eight minutes before his Norwegian Air flight from Gatwick to Los Angeles was scheduled to depart at 5:47 a.m. on May 11. When Abdellak arrived at the airport, his plane was still on the runway but the boarding door was closed, so the airline staff denied him boarding. He then called the police department claiming there was a bomb on board, which caused passengers to be re-screened at security, effectively delaying the plane’s takeoff by 90 minutes. Ultimately, Abdellak was allowed to board the plane.
RELATED: Widow Sues American Airlines for Over $1M After False Bomb Threat Accusation Against Husband
However, when he showed up to the airport to board another U.S.-bound flight on May 22, he was arrested, as the phone number from the bomb hoax had been linked to the same one he used to book his airfare.
WATCH THIS: Airline Employee Allegedly Hijacks Plane Closing Down Seattle Airport Before Doing Stunts & Crashing
In court on Tuesday, Abdellak plead guilty to communicating false information regarding a “noxious substance likely to create serious risk to human health,” despite originally claiming he has lost his phone’s SIM card. According to Reuters, he will serve a ten-month prison sentence.
“This was a quite ridiculous decision made by Abdellak, who fabricated an extremely serious allegation purely for his own benefit,” Gatwick Police Chief Inspector Marc Clothier said on Thursday.
RELATED: Kids Flying Alone Put in Hotel Room with a Stranger After Flight Is Delayed Overnight
“He was running late for his flight and thought it would be a good idea to call in a hoax bomb,” Clothier continued, “however this turned out to be the worst decision he could have made.”
Source: Read Full Article