Mangaluru airport: Suspicious object that led to ‘bomb scare’ was a power bank

A bomb scare at the Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) following the detention of a passenger with a ‘suspicious object’ in his possession created some tense moments. However, on examination, it was found that the object was only a power bank he was carrying, airport sources said.

The passenger from Kerala was about to board an IndiGo flight to Dubai via Bengaluru when he was detained with the ‘object’ late last evening, as the officials found the image of a ‘thick substance’ while screening.

When the power bank was opened, it was found to contain a clay-like substance after which the passenger was taken for questioning.
The device was only a China-made power bank packed in an unusual way.

In view of the alert from the Home Ministry asking airports to be cautious, Aviation security agency’s chief Rajesh Kumar Chandra asked IndiGo to lodge an FIR so that a detailed examination of the clay-like substance could be carried out.

The IndiGo counter was also cordoned off for some time, the sources said.
An officer who came out after the examination of the device confirmed that the news carried by certain channels about ‘cell phone bomb’ was false and the device was nothing but a power bank.

Later, city …read more