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| Britain |
| Man arrested over Gatwick bomb hoax |
| 2009-03-23 |
| Police have arrested a man on suspicion of involvement in a bomb hoax after an incident temporarily shut down London's Gatwick airport. The incident occurred Sunday morning aboard EK 011 flight from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to London. Sussex police said a passenger on board the flight found a note implying there may be a suspicious device onboard, CNN reported. According to Emirates airline, the note was found about 10 minutes before the plane landed at Gatwick. The discovery forced airport officials to close Gatwick at about 6:45 a.m. local time. There were 164 passengers aboard the plane. They and the crew were evacuated from the plane, and a bomb disposal team worked with police to search the aircraft and luggage. "This was potentially an extremely serious situation and we immediately mounted an emergency response. At all times public safety was the key priority. All the agencies worked together to provide a coordinated response and minimize disruption and the airport operated as normal during this time," Chief Inspector Ed Henriet said in the Sussex police statement. He added, "We are very grateful for the calm and understanding response from those directly affected, including the passengers who were on board and those waiting to meet them." The police said they have arrested a man in his 20s in connection with the incident. Meanwhile, a Sussex police spokeswoman declined to comment whether the detainee was a passenger on the plane. She only said the search and investigation was concluded by 3 p.m. local time. |
| Posted by:Fred |