Passenger causing hijack scare walks free
The passenger who caused a major hijack scare has walked free from a Bali police station without charge.
Police say they have accepted that 28-year-old Australian plumber Matt Lockley made a genuine mistake when he banged on the cockpit door of the Virgin Australia plane, believing it was where the toilet was located, reports the Daily Mail.
After carrying out blood and urine tests, they have also concluded that he was not drunk and have accepted his explanation that he had only consumed soft drinks because he was on medication.
‘He has not been charged,’ said a police spokesman. ‘He is free to leave.’
His banging on the cockpit door resulted in the pilots, named by Bali police as Captain Neil Cooper and co-pilot Ryan Stockwell, reportedly raising the alarm about a hijack attempt.
A Virgin Australia spokeswoman said the pilot had entered the code for ‘unlawful interference’ which was ‘standard operating procedure, based on the threat they perceived at the time’.
The unarmed passenger had been handcuffed by crew and restrained in a seat at the back of flight from Brisbane before being removed by armed officers in Bali.
Planes were prevented from leaving Denpasar airport, while others were put in a holding pattern or diverted to other cities.
The airport was closed for nearly two hours because of the incident, air force base commander Col Sugiharto Prapto said.
Mr Prapto said the plane was directed to park at the end of the runway in case explosives or weapons were involved.
Diane
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