Plane about to take off recalled for cops to arrest passenger who posted: 'No one knows I'm going to blow the plane up'
Plane about to take off recalled for cops to arrest passenger who posted: 'No one knows I'm going to blow the plane up'
A 22-year-old man was charged on June 5 with communicating false information of harmful thing while onboard an aircraft on Valentine's Day.
The police said they were alerted to a social media post containing a threat to blow up an aircraft on Feb 14 at about 7.20pm.
Through follow-up investigations, officers from the Airport Police Division established the identity of the man, Azim Shah Abubakar Shah, within an hour of the post and confirmed that he was onboard a flight bound for Abu Dhabi.
The aircraft was already taxiing on the runway and about to take off, but was recalled to Changi Airport Terminal 2, where the man was subsequently arrested.
Investigations revealed that he allegedly posted "No one here knows I'm going to blow the plane up" on his social media account after he had boarded the aircraft.
According to court documents, the Singaporean was on board the Etihad Airways plane when he allegedly posted the threat on his Instagram account under the username "fruitloops_19", reported The Straits Times.
The post was viewed by 16 people.
PHOTO: THE STRAITS TIMES
Azim was found to have no means to carry out his threat as no threat items were discovered in his possession, said the police.
The offence of communicating false information of harmful thing carries an imprisonment term of up to seven years, a fine of up to $50,000 or both.
Commander of Airport Police Division, Assistant Commissioner of Police M. Malathi said: "Beyond fear and inconvenience caused, the making of false threats, especially relating to airport and airline operations, involves significant public resources that have to be deployed to deal with the incident.
"All security threats will be thoroughly investigated and those responsible will be tracked down and prosecuted."
Click here to contribute a story or submit it to our WhatsApp
Get more of Stomp's latest updates by following us on:
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AsiaOne
18 hours ago
- AsiaOne
Wrong food delivery: Man 'feels unsafe', calls police , Singapore News
A Singaporean man made a police report after he found a Deliveroo order mistakenly left at his door last month. According to Mothership, the man, identified as Lee, "felt unsafe" handling the unfamiliar package and contacted Deliveroo's customer service, who told him to keep or dispose of the food. A picture of the delivery receipt indicated that the order included tomato soup noodles, vinegar black fungus and chicken wings from noodle chain Tamjai Samgor. While the receipt had the original customer's name, it did not have the intended address for the delivery. He said that when he requested to speak with the customer service manager, the call agent left him on hold for five minutes before hanging up. He then called the police, who helped him dispose of the food, and also lodged a report. When contacted by AsiaOne, the police confirmed that an officer helped Lee dispose off the delivery and added that there was no offence and no investigation regarding this incident. Lee also filed a formal complaint with the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case), who said it only assists with negotiations and mediation regarding contractual disputes and that Lee's case was not under their preview, Mothership reported. When Lee reached out to Deliveroo again, he was told that the order was mistakenly delivered to him due to an operational error and hygiene concerns prevented the food delivery platform from collecting back the order. "I am not seeking compensation — only to raise awareness about how delivery mistakes are pushed onto the public, and how our current system leaves people unprotected," Mothership quoted him as saying. A Deliveroo spokesperson told AsiaOne that the company is aware of the incident and understands the concern raised. "In some instances, customers may request for the food to be left outside their door for convenience or safety, which is why occasional confusion can occur," the spokesperson said. On Reddit, netizens expressed their disbelief and ridiculed Lee's actions. "What is this guy on about? He needs a IMH appointment," one comment said. "No wonder the police are overworked," another comment said. [[nid:712962]]
Straits Times
21 hours ago
- Straits Times
Retiree in Malaysia loses $49,040 after being scammed to be a sperm donor for a ‘beautiful woman' in HK
The 57-year-old parted with RM161,000 to the scammers before finally deciding to call off the 'deal'. PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO Retiree in Malaysia loses $49,040 after being scammed to be a sperm donor for a 'beautiful woman' in HK Having ignored warnings from the bank and police, a retiree lost RM161,000 (S$49,040) after being lured by an online scam to become a sperm donor for a supposedly beautiful woman in Hong Kong. The 57-year-old saw an advertisement on social media stating that the woman wanted to bear a child and that there would be a reward of HK$2mil (S$327,940) for the man chosen. 'I was communicating with a person claiming to be a lawyer for the woman who said he would formalise the agreement. 'I was told to make several payments, including RM10,000 for air tickets and RM30,000 for protection services for her,' the man told a press conference held by MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Seri Michael Chong in Ku ala Lumpur on June 5. The retiree, who identified himself as Tan, said he continued to make more payments, including to fly in doctors who would monitor him to ensure that the baby would be born healthy. In total, Tan parted with RM161,000 to the scammers before finally deciding to call off the 'deal', without even meeting the woman or the so-called lawyer in person. Mr Chong said he was disappointed with Tan for being so gullible and falling for what was an outright scam. 'The bank officer called and asked to meet with him on the transactions, as he suspected it was a scam. 'After meeting the bank officer and a policeman who told him the same thing, Tan continued to make payments to the scammer. 'The scammer told Tan not to be scared and that his payment was ready, and even provided a screenshot of a cheque written out to him. 'Tan admits he had been utterly stupid to fall for this. He only hopes that others will not fall victim like him,' Mr Chong said. Mr Chong said he believed that the woman in the photos was also a victim, with her details being used by scammers. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
a day ago
- Straits Times
Oscar Pistorius competes in triathlon 12 years after murdering girlfriend
South African former Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius competes in a triathlon event, 12 years after murdering his girlfriend and a year after his release on parole, in the coastal city of Durban, South Africa, June 1, 2025. REUTERS/Michael Fragoeiro South African former Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius competes in a triathlon event, 12 years after murdering his girlfriend and a year after his release on parole, in the coastal city of Durban, South Africa, June 1, 2025. REUTERS/Michael Fragoeiro JOHANNESBURG - South African former Paralympic star Oscar Pistorius was spotted competing in a triathlon last weekend in the coastal city of Durban, 12 years after murdering his girlfriend and a year after his release on parole. Afrikaans-language news website Netwerk24 on Wednesday reported Pistorius' participation in the Ironman 70.3 competition. Netwerk24 cited an unnamed source as saying that Pistorius had permission from his parole officer to compete. Conrad Dormehl, an attorney for Pistorius, confirmed to Reuters that Pistorius had participated in the Durban race. Singabakho Nxumalo, spokesperson of South Africa's Department of Correctional Services, said he did not know whether Pistorius had received permission to compete, but would find out and respond to questions sent by Reuters. He said his parole officer would have needed to approve him travelling from where he lives to another district. Pistorius - dubbed "Blade Runner" for his carbon-fibre prosthetic legs - shot dead 29-year-old model Reeva Steenkamp through a locked bathroom door on Valentine's Day in 2013, in a crime that drew worldwide attention and shocked a nation inured to violence against women. He repeatedly said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder and launched multiple appeals against his conviction on that basis. Pistorius, now 38, was freed from jail in January 2024 after completing more than half his sentence and is on parole until his sentence expires in 2029. Netwerk24 published a photograph of Pistorius riding a bicycle with the race number 105. Pistorius' distinctive tattoo and prosthetic legs were visible in the photograph. Reuters contacted the photographer who gave the news agency permission to publish images similar to the one Netwerk24 used. Results published online by sports-timing company SportSplits show an athlete called Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius competed in the triathlon under race number 105, coming 555th among all participants and third in the "physically challenged" category. The race involved a 2-km swim, a 90-km bike ride and a 21-km run - a total distance of 70.3 miles. Pistorius was once the darling of the sports world, and a pioneering voice for disabled athletes, for whom he campaigned to be allowed to compete with able-bodied participants at major sports events. He won six gold medals over three Paralympic Games in Athens, Beijing and London, and competed in able-bodied races at the London 2012 Olympics. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
