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First-time flier could face jail for bomb joke that backfired
Lion Air
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Lion Air. (kompas.com) (kompas.com)
Lion Air. (kompas.com)
A 23-year-old passenger found himself in hot water shortly after boarding his first flight on Sunday - in legal trouble for a "bomb joke" that backfired on an air stewardess.
"I wanted to tease her because she's pretty," Pichit Boondaeng said at a press conference Monday, "I had no idea that it would cause serious damage."
The "bomb" word caused panic inside the Lion Air plane, which was preparing to take off, and eventually led to a serious flight delay.
Pichit, a State Railways employee, became the first suspect to be charged under a recently introduced law on aviation-related offences.
"I should not have said those words," Pichit said. "I had never been on an aircraft before."
Pichit boarded the Hat Yai-bound flight at Bangkok's Don Mueang Airport to attend a friend's wedding ceremony in Songkhla province. Once inside the aircraft, an air stewardess told him he needed to put his carry-on bag inside an overhead luggage bin. He responded by handing his bag to her and jokingly saying, "Be careful with the bag. It may explode."
Pol Lt General Sanit Mahathavorn, the acting metropolitan police chief, said yesterday that Pichit had been charged with spreading false information that might cause panic at an airport.
If convicted, Pichit could face up to five years in jail and a fine of up to Bt200,000.
"Penalties would be even harsher if such an offence occurred during the flight or after the aircraft had taken off," Sanit said.
Pichit has now been released on bail.
At the press conference, Pichit said he wanted to apologize for the damage and inconvenience caused. He said he was not aware that his words would cause serious consequences and that they were against the law.
"I repent. I will never do such things again," the young man said.
Sanit said police had decided to hold a press conference on the case because the law involved was relatively new.
"We would like to raise public awareness of this law and to ensure that people can learn a lesson from Pichit's case," he said. (kes)(+)
