Forty-one airports across the country received hoax bomb threat emails on Tuesday, triggering extensive anti-sabotage checks by security agencies that lasted for hours. According to the official sources, the emails originated from the address exhumedyou888@gmail.com around 12:40 pm.
The emails prompted airports to implement contingency plans and conduct thorough terminal sweeps based on recommendations from the Bomb Threat Assessment Committees, the sources informed PTI.
Who is behind these bomb threat emails?
Suspicions point to an online group named “KNR” as the likely source behind these hoax emails, which had previously targeted several schools in the Delhi-NCR region on May 1, sources added.
Each email carried a similar threatening message: “Hello, there are explosives hidden in the Airport. The bombs will soon explode. You will all die.”
Despite these threats being deemed hoaxes, airport operations continued without disruption to passenger movements to the fullest extent possible, as per the sources.
Patna airport receives bomb threat
Officials at Patna airport received a bomb threat via email on Tuesday, prompting a comprehensive search of the premises and an increase in security measures. However, officials later confirmed that the email was a hoax.
“A bomb threat through email was received at the Jayaprakash Narayan International Airport, besides 41 other airports. The Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) Meeting was convened… and it found the threat to be non-specific,” Airport Director Anchal Prakash said.
“The email, which was received around 1.10 pm, contained a bomb threat. Security has been bolstered at the airport in the wake of the development,” a senior police officer said. “We are trying to trace the source of the email and the sender,” he added.
Nagpur airport gets bomb threat email
Officials at Nagpur airport in Maharashtra reported receiving a bomb threat email, prompting a comprehensive security sweep of the premises. However, authorities confirmed that no suspicious items were discovered during the inspection. As a precautionary measure, security measures at the airport have been intensified in response to the threat email.
“The Airports Authority of India (AAI) received a bomb threat email at the Nagpur airport, which was then communicated to the authorities of the Nagpur airport around 2 pm. The mail said that a bomb has been planted at the airport,” a senior official of the airport said.
Jaipur airport receives bomb threat
Security agencies conducted a comprehensive investigation at Jaipur airport on Tuesday following the receipt of a bomb threat. Prompted by an email received by airport management, both police and CISF conducted a thorough search of the premises.
“The airport underwent a thorough inspection, but no suspicious items were discovered,” stated the police. This incident echoes similar threats received by the airport back in April. Additionally, earlier that day, a bomb threat was reported at a private college, which authorities later confirmed to be a hoax.
Vadodara airport receives bomb threat email
Security measures were heightened at Vadodara Airport in Gujarat following the receipt of a bomb threat email by airport authorities on Tuesday. Inspector RD Chauhan from Harni PS, Vadodara, confirmed that police teams were deployed to oversee security operations at the airport in response to the threat.
Furthermore, the Bomb Disposal Squad, Dog Squads, Ambulance, and Fire tenders were also dispatched to the airport as precautionary measures. “Confidential information was received, after which teams of Police have been formed to take care of the security arrangements at the Airport. Bomb Disposal Squad and Dog Squads, Ambulance, Fire tenders have also reached the airport,” Inspector RD Chauhan said.
Hoax bomb threat spree in India
In May this year, Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport and several government hospitals in Delhi were rattled after receiving bomb threats via email on a Sunday. Following the incidents at these establishments, Delhi Police confirmed that thorough checks revealed no suspicious items.
“Nothing suspicious was found,” stated the police. According to Delhi Police reports, an unidentified sender emailed a bomb threat to IGI Airport on Sunday afternoon, claiming the presence of an explosive device on the premises.
(With inputs from PTI)