Image
Monday, 4 January 2016 - 15:30
Brit held in bomb threat released; Case dropped
The 29 year old British man arrested on Schiphol airport on Friday for shouting that he had a bomb, was released on Saturday and the case against him was dropped, the Public Prosecutor announced. Further investigation could not conclusively prove that the man actually shouted that he had a bomb.
A desk clerk heard the man saying that he had a bomb and informed her colleagues. The Koninklijke Marechaussee, the policing force in charge of airport security, overpowered and arrested the man. The departure hall in question was searched, but nothing was found. In the commotion that followed, other people also stated that they heard the man talking about the bomb.
According to the Prosecutor, further investigation showed that this was not the case. The man had a fight with his girlfriend in the departure hall and was under the influence of alcohol and narcotics at the time.
"In this time of heightened alertness, especially in places such as airports, the prosecutor considers the interpretation and subsequent actions of the desk clerk and others present as an understandable human reaction", the Prosecutor writes.