Man Who Made False Bomb Threat on Scoot Flight Sentenced to 6 Months’ Jail

By
Goh Yi Ling
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We all have intrusive thoughts once in a while, but we usually can control them.

And controlling these thoughts is all for the better for us.

For those who are unaware of what intrusive thoughts are, they refer to thoughts that pop out of nowhere, which make you think, “Wait, what was that?”.

One man who lied about having a bomb on a Scoot flight was sentenced to six months in jail.

Here is more about what happened.

Man Made False Bomb Threat on Scoot Flight Sentenced to 6 Months Jail

When we fly, the one thing most of us hate most is having our flight delayed.

After all, who wants to reach their holiday destination later than expected and throw the plan out of whack?

For some passengers who were on board the Scoot flight TR16 on 12 October 2023, their plans were unfortunately disrupted by more than seven hours.

The cause? A man who thought it was a good idea to alert the flight crew about a “bomb” that he had with him on the plane.

The plane was mid-air when this happened, en route to Perth after a stopover in Singapore.

After the reporting of the “bomb”, the plane turned back to Singapore, where it was escorted by two Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) fighter jets and underwent extensive checks.

It turned out that the bomb threat was a hoax, and the flight eventually returned on its flight path to Perth.

The man, for his part in this bomb hoax, was sentenced to six months of jail on 22 December 2023.

For those who are interested, the man was Mr Kevin Francis Hawkins, a 30-year-old.

He Was Suffering From Schizophrenia and Major Depressive Disorder

Whatever could have made this man do what he did? Reporting a bomb, no less a false one, is a serious matter.

It turns out that Mr Hawkins was struggling with some personal issues.

The Straits Times reported that Mr Hawkins suffered from a “relapse of schizophrenia coupled with an episode of major depressive disorder” at the time when he reported the bomb.

In case you don’t know, schizophrenia is a “serious mental illness” which can cause psychotic, negative and cognitive effects in people.

Mr Hawkins reported told the cabin crew that he had a “bomb” in his pocket because he wanted to be arrested upon landing in Perth.

He did not know that his “revelation” would cause the plane to turn back to Singapore.

After he reported the “bomb”, with the cabin crew verifying with him what he said, his wife reportedly also said that Mr Hawkins had suffered from mental illness.

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Goh Yi Ling
Email: [email protected]