Fake Bomb sent as Holi Gift

 

Fake Bomb sent as Holi Gift 

It was a regular Thursday afternoon for most residents of Indiranagar, behind the hustle and bustle of 100 Feet Road. J.B. Surana got a phone call at 12.27 pm from an unknown landline number; and the person, speaking in Hindi and English, informed him that a Holi “gift“ had been left inside his compound and that he should check its contents immediately.

“After answering the call, I asked my family to go outside and check. They found a bag kept right next to the steps with a strange ticking sound coming from it. Alarmed, I informed the jurisdictional police who rushed to the spot within a few minutes.“

He said, “When I called the number back repeatedly, I found that it was a PCO in Doopasandra. Around 1 pm, I got a second call from a mobile phone, asking if I had opened the gift and checked its contents. I hung up after failing to recognise the person's voice. Both, the PCO and mobile numbers have been given to the police.“

The Jeevan Bima Nagar police cordoned off the area and placed sand bags around the bag as a precautionary measure. The police warned the neighbours to remain indoors and to be prepared for an evacuation in case of an emergency. Soon after, the bomb defusing squad, accompanied by sniffer dogs, arrived at the spot and was pressed into service. The experts found that it was a fake bomb made of six black pipes wrapped with a red cellophane tape; with wires connected to an alarm clock fixed on top of the contraption. After the experts confirmed that it was a hoax, the area returned to normalcy.

DCP (East) Krishna Bhatta, who supervised the operation, said that a case under Explosive Substances Act, triggering panic in society, threatening an individual and other sections have been registered by the Ulsoor police.