Turk who claimed there was a bomb on a flight from Gatwick Airport has been sent to prison.
Shortly before 4.30pm on Tuesday (9 September) Muhammet Demir, 20, called police and said he had seen a bomb on an Easyjet aeroplane that was due to fly from Gatwick to Turkey.
The only Easyjet flight to Izmir in Turkey that day was at that time taxiing on the runway with 170 passengers on board so it was recalled to a remote stand where it was met by armed police.
Officers, working with Gatwick and airline staff, were able to establish that the call was a hoax and the phone message was traced to Demir, of no fixed address, who had been due to be on the flight. However the operation caused the flight to be delayed for three hours.
Police forces around the country were notified about Demir and he was arrested as he tried to board a flight at Luton Airport.
The Turkish national admitted what he had done but has refused to say why he made the call.
At Brighton Magistrates’ Court on Saturday (13 September) Demir pleaded guilty to communicating a false message to cause a bomb hoax. He was remanded in custody to appear before a crown court for sentencing on a date to be set.
DI Andy Richardson said:
“Fortunately we were able to identify that this was a hoax call but it still caused considerable worry at the airport.We investigate fully all claims and threats like this and will not rest until we find those responsible.
Making hoax calls not only wastes the time and money but also delays us from responding to genuine emergencies.
