Australian charged after repeatedly saying ‘bomb’ on Perth-bound Scoot flight that had to turn back to S’pore

SINGAPORE – A 30-year-old Australian man who was

arrested on Thursday after allegedly making a bomb threat on a Perth-bound Scoot flight

was charged on Saturday.

Hawkins Kevin Francis was charged with making false threats of terrorist acts.

At about 4.30pm on Thursday, he had allegedly uttered “I have a bomb” to one cabin crew member, and uttered the word “bomb” repeatedly to another, according to court documents.

At about 4.55pm that day, the police were alerted to a case of an alleged bomb threat on board Flight TR16 from Singapore to Perth.

Preliminary investigations revealed that during the flight, the man had allegedly informed cabin crew members repeatedly that he was in possession of a bomb, said the police in a statement on Saturday.

The plane had departed Singapore and needed to turn back to Singapore under the escort of Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) fighter aircraft as a result of the threat. 

The plane landed safely at Changi Airport at 6.26pm.

For the safety of all passengers and crew, officers from the Airport Police Division and Special Operations Command’s K-9 Unit were mobilised to investigate the bomb threat, the police added.

Due to the additional security measures implemented to ensure the safety of all the people on board Flight TR16, there was a delay of more than five hours before the nine crew members and 362 passengers disembarked in Singapore at 9.19pm, said the police. A spokesman for budget carrier Scoot had said the plane left Changi Airport at 4.11pm.

The flight subsequently departed Singapore for Perth at 11.41pm.

The bomb threat was found to be false, the police said.

The accused has been remanded at the Institute of Mental Health for medical examination. The case will be heard again on Oct 27.

If a crime takes place in a Singapore-controlled aircraft flying outside of the country, the offender can be charged with the offence under Singapore laws.

If found guilty, the offender can be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to $500,000, or both.

“The police treats all security threats seriously and will not hesitate to take action against anyone who causes public alarm with false threats,” said the police.

“Beyond the fear and inconvenience caused to other members of the public, the making of false threats comes at a cost of public resources that have to be deployed to deal with the incident.”

In September 2022, Singapore Airlines Flight SQ33

had to be escorted by two RSAF fighter jets

before it landed at Changi Airport.

A 37-year-old American man was arrested

after he allegedly made a bomb threat on board the flight from San Francisco. The man, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia after his arrest, was subsequently given a stern warning for the bomb threat and four weeks’ jail for slapping an air steward.

In March,

a Singapore Airlines flight was grounded in Johannesburg’s airport in South Africa

following a bomb threat. The aircraft, which was carrying 58 passengers and 15 crew members, was later declared safe.