Man charged over ‘bomb threat’ on aeroplane

A man has been charged with endangering the safety of an aircraft and making false threats after he threatened to detonate a bomb and attempted to enter the cockpit of a Malaysia Airlines plane flying out of Australia.

Manodh Marks appeared in court yesterday and faces a potential 10-year prison sentence on each charge.

His lawyer, Tess Dunsford, told the magistrate that Marks had a psychiatric illness and would not apply for bail. He did not enter pleas.

Police said the 25-year-old Sri Lankan had been discharged from a Melbourne psychiatric hospital on Wednesday before buying a ticket for the flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Marks was tackled and tied up by passengers after making the threat and the flight returned to Australia. He did not have a bomb.

Police said Marks has no “terrorist” links or associates.

About 10 minutes after Flight 128 took off from Melbourne, Marks walked from his economy seat to the cockpit door clutching an electronic device and threatening to blow up the plane, creating panic among passengers.

Passengers subdued him and tied him up with belts.

“At that point, he was essentially trussed up,” Victoria Police chief commissioner Graham Ashton said.

Marks, who is in Australia on a student visa while studying to be a chef, appeared at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court. He will appear in court next on August 24.

Passengers were kept on the plane for 90 minutes after landing and the plane was searched for potential bombs at a remote part of the airport, Mr Ashton said.