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| Stink bomb sparks terror alert on Sydney train |
| 2007-05-03 |
| A CHILDISH prank – detonating a stink bomb on a commuter train – sparked a counter-terrorism investigation in Sydney today. Two teenage boys are accused of detonating the prank devices – which have a strong odour but are harmless – on a commuter train on the northern line at about 10.30am (AEST) today. The boys, who have been captured on security camera footage but have not been arrested, then let one off at St Leonards railway station in Sydney's north. Assistant Police Commissioner Dave Owens said passengers began to panic after hearing an explosion on the train between St Leonards and Wollstonecraft stations. The boys had got off the train minutes earlier at St Leonards station – where a second device was let off at an unattended ticket booth. Police, including the elite counter-terrorism command, launched into action after numerous triple-0 callers reported an explosion on a train. Passengers were evacuated at Wollstonecraft while the train was taken to North Sydney railway station, where police established a crime scene. Mr Owens said police had thrown lots of resources into the response and didn't find the prank funny. "It would have been terrifying. You're on a train, you hear a loud bang, the logical conclusion that people drew was (that it was) probably a terrorist attack," Mr Owens said. "It wasn't, we don't treat it as a joke, we don't see it as funny at all. "We had to throw a number of resources, from local area commands, regional police, and from the counter-terrorist community into this incident." |
| Posted by:Thrusing Ebbains8680 |
| #3 In my teens, I used to like putting them under carpets for people to step on, especially in elevators |
| Posted by: Bugs Hupusose2306 2007-05-03 21:55 |
| #2 Since when did stink bombs require detonation? The ones we had at school were just little bottles that that you snapped the top off. A couple of those were more than sufficient to make a train carriage smell like Michael Moore's bathroom. |
| Posted by: Sonar 2007-05-03 13:32 |
| #1 How safe are we if 2 bored teens can detonate a device on a train? Thankfully nobody was hurt, but it has to put a dent in our sense of security. if we abandon the strong war, there will be real bombings by the score once the jihadis difuse themselves into the 'civilized' world instead of concentrating themselves in places like iraq where we can kill them. |
| Posted by: Abu do you love 2007-05-03 12:42 |