Fake bomb found on cargo plane

Man arrested in London as investigation is launched into hoax device placed on UPS flight to Istanbul An investigation has been launched into how a fake bomb was transported on a cargo plane from the UK, just five months after the discovery of cargo-hold bombs was supposed to have boosted security. A 26-year-old man was arrested at his home last week suspected of a bomb hoax, police said. He was taken to a north London police station and, bailed to return in May. The Met confirmed that they had searched an address in north London and the incident was not terrorist-related. The suspicious device had apparently been stowed on a UPS flight two weeks ago and travelled to Turkey undetected. The Department for Transport said it was taking the matter “very seriously”. A Turkish man delivered the package, consisting of a timer, wires and detonator inside a wedding cake box, to a UPS office in north London, a Turkish source told ITV News. It was only discovered after a security screening in Istanbul. Last October, packages containing explosive material hidden in printer ink cartridges sent from Yemen to the US sparked a global terror alert. One was discovered during a routine stop at East Midlands airport in the UK, and the other was found in Dubai. Both contained the high explosive PETN (pentaerythritol tetranitrate). Police said they had been timed to detonate over the eastern seaboard of the United States. At the time, it was promised that airports in the UK would improve their cargo screening. The Department for Transport said yesterday: “The government is aware of this incident and takes it very seriously. We have already begun an investigation which will look at all aspects of this incident, including UPS’s procedures. The UK has one of the toughest security regimes for air cargo in the world. All security measures are subject to continuous review.” A UPS spokeswoman said: “Two weeks ago, a suspicious package travelled within the UPS network aboard an all-cargo aircraft from the United Kingdom to Istanbul, Turkey. “UPS is co-operating with the UK Department for Transport’s investigation of the incident. UPS has a multiple-layered approach to ensure security.” Last year, a device found at Windhoek airport in Namibia turned out to have been made in the US to test security. German security experts said it was most likely that either US or African authorities had been behind the test. It is believed that over the years the US transport security administration has carried out multiple tests using undercover agents to put dummy bombs through security scanners at US airports. Crime UK security and terrorism Global terrorism Cargo plane bomb plot Jonathan Paige guardian.co.uk

Posted by on March 29, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.