Australian creates chaos at Bali airport in ‘suicide’ standoff
An Australian tourist caused havoc at Bali’s Nguruh Rai Airport on two separate occasions.
Gregory Butler, 46, stepped over a glass partition onto a narrow ledge above the airport departure hall and began ranting.
It caused a standoff for about 90 minutes before he was forcibly dragged to safety by another nman who tried to negotiate with him.
He was then detained by authorities.
Butler denied he had any intention to jump and it was simply a ‘protest’ against corrupt Australian officials.
Airport authorities later said they discovered anti-depressants in his bag and was then taken to hospital for psychiatric evaluation.
Just a day earlier he reportedly forced a cancellation of a Kuala Lumpur bound flight at the airport.
As the plane left the gate he knocked on the cockpit door saying someone was trying to kill him.
The pilot chose to return to the gate and Butler was detained overnight, airport officials said.
"For safety reasons the pilot decided to return to the apron and the flight was cancelled," said airport communications and legal chief, Arie Ahsanurrohin.
Ahsanurrohin said no charges are expected to be filed for either incident.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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