Youth convicted for delaying President's flight

Chennai, Jan 31 (UNI) A magistrate court today convicted and awarded four months of rigorous imprisonment (RI) to a 20-year-old youth for making a bomb threat call, delaying the departure of special IAF aircraft in which President A P J Abdul Kalam was to return to New Delhi, after his two-day visit to the city in September last.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate M P Jaganathan awarded the sentence, after holding the youth, Perinbazhagan, hailing from Kodikanal, guilty under Section 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation) and Section 507 (Criminal intimidation by an annonymous communication) of the Indian Penal Code.

The Magistrate awarded two months RI each under the two sections.

As the youth had already served more than four months in prison, ever since he was arrested on September six, he was let free by the court.

The cyber crime wing of the Central Crime Branch Police, which investigated the case, said the youth had made the anonymous call to the city police control room from a Public Call Office (PCO).

After he had twice called the Control Room and claimed a bomb was planted in the special aircraft, police swung into action and launched a thorough check up by unloading the 33 suitcases of the President's entourage and found that the call was an hoax.

Police later traced the caller to a Coin Box PCO located inside a Jewellery shop. After perusing the closed circuit television installed at the shop, police arrested the youth.

UNI