Monday, January 18, 2010

Twitter Joke Prompts U.K. Terror Arrest Amid Tight Airport Security

A British man was arrested on suspected terror charges after airing his frustration at air travel delays on social networking site Twitter, it emerged Monday.

Airport security around the globe has been heightened since the failed Christmas Day bombing aboard a Detroit-bound jet, with fears of further terrorist attacks making security and police forces jumpy.

When Robin Hood Airport near Sheffield, northern England was closed Jan. 6 due to terrible weather conditions Paul Chambers joked on his Twitter page, "Robin Hood airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your shit together, otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!!" The Independent newspaper reported Monday.

However South Yorkshire police force took Chambers’ joke to be a threat, and arrested him a week later on suspicion of communicating a bomb hoax under the U.K.’s Criminal Law Act 1977.

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