Posted on 05/19/2002 6:09:33 AM PDT by mrfixit514
Man Held in Bomb Scare at Chattanooga Air Show
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - (Reuters) - A man who left two suspicious packages at the Chattanooga airport was taken into custody by police on Saturday, delaying the start of an air show, but a bomb squad determined the packages contained no explosives.
The man, identified as May Willy Sommer, 62, was spotted by airport security guards placing a "briefcase-type package" under a table near two U.S. Air Force Thunderbird jets, said Ed Buice, a spokesman for the Chattanooga Police Department. A second package was left in a nearby parking lot.
"He was taken away by sheriff's deputies," Buice said.
Tim Burke, a supervisor at the local FBI office, said there were no indications that explosives were involved, but criminal trespass were being considered by Chattanooga airport police.
Buice said federal charges against Sommer may be filed later.
The incident delayed the opening of the air show in southeastern Tennessee, which drew an estimated 20,000 people.
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