MANILA, Philippines — A passenger was arrested by the Philippine National Police-Aviation Security Group (PNP-ASG) after making a bomb joke that caused a flight to Cebu to be delayed for over two hours.
Authorities identified the passenger as 48-year-old Leonardo Tugahan. He was taken into custody on Sunday, May 25, for violating Presidential Decree 1727, also known as the Anti-Bomb Joke Law.
According to the Aviation Security Group, the joke was reported by a staff member of the 1Aviation Operations Control Center. The incident happened at Bay 126 of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3.
In response to the report, airport authorities moved all passenger luggage away from the aircraft for safety. At around 5:05 p.m., police began a thorough inspection of the baggage belonging to passengers of Cebu Pacific flight 5J-571. No explosives were found during the inspection.
Tugahan was brought to the Aviation Police office at Terminal 3 for further questioning and investigation.
