Girl arrested for prank tweet to American Airlines
A Dutch teenager who sent a threatening tweet to American Airlines as a joke has been arrested after walking into a police station and giving herself up.
However, the 14-year-old’s prank has set off a chain of copycat tweets to American and other US airlines.
The girl, who uses the twitter name @QueenDemetriax, is being interviewed by officers after she apparently appeared at the police station in Rotterdam, accompanied by a relative.
She has not been charged with any offence.
American Airlines had threatened to report her to the FBI after she tweeted: "hello my name’s Ibrahim and I’m from Afghanistan. I’m part of Al Qaida and on June 1st I’m gonna do something really big bye"
American Airlines responded, saying it took all threats seriously and had passed her IP (Internet Protocol) address to the FBI.
It is not clear if the airline carried out its threat after the girl apologised profusely on twitter for the prank, said she was only 14 and scared, and deleted her original tweet.
Since her arrest, dozens of Twitter trolls have tweeted bomb threats, most of them aimed at American Airlines but some have named Southwest and USAirways.
One said: @AmericanAir You really seem to not care that i’m about to bomb your plane that’s headed to Paris. Btw, my name is Ahmed.
Another wrote: @AmericanAir I have a bomb under the next plane to take off
And a third joked: @SouthwestAir I bake really good pies and my friends call me ″the bomb" am I still allowed to fly?
It is not clear whether American Airlines and other carriers are investigating all of the prank tweets.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
United Airlines to be the sole US airline to fly to Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City from October
Iberia adds new US, Latin America routes
Airbnb eyes a loyalty program but details remain under wraps
RX launches WTM Spotlight with an inaugural event in Saudi Arabia
What’s new on Route 66 in Arizona