Airport ‘bomb joker’ nabbed

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines on Wednesday reported that a foreign passenger will face charges for making a bomb joke at Laguindingan Airport last Monday night.

CAAP said that the passenger — identified as an American — is now detained following his statements regarding bombs while on board a flight at Laguindingan Airport in Misamis Oriental.

According to Laguindingan Airport manager Job de Jesus, a flight DG 6723 from Mactan-Cebu, carrying 73 passengers, had already landed and parked at Laguindingan Airport and during the disembarkation process, the US citizen threatened everyone by screaming, “I can shoot you all, and I can trigger the bomb,” as he stood up to grab his baggage.

The incident was immediately reported to the airport control tower and following this, all of the passengers’ baggage was inspected by the CAAP Security and Intelligence Unit and the PNP-Aviation Security Unit using K9 paneling and none of it revealed any signs of bombs.

In order to face the proper charges, the suspect is being held at the PNP headquarters at Laguindingan Airport after being interrogated by PNP-AVSEU.

Meanwhile, De Jesus reminded air travelers about the inconvenience caused by making bomb jokes.

“We consistently emphasize to passengers and airport users that joking or making bomb jokes at the airport or on an airplane is strictly prohibited. Anyone caught will face serious charges, including corresponding penalties and imprisonment,” De Jesus said.