To stop girlfriend, Chinese man says bomb on plane

BEIJING - A Chinese man who did not want his girlfriend to visit the Shanghai Expo told police that the plane she would be travelling in had a bomb in it.

Tian Yu, 21, from Henan province, was sentenced to one and a half years in prison by the district people’s court in Henan’s Kaifeng city Tuesday, the People’s Daily reported.

Tian called up the Xinzheng international airport in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan province May 8, and relayed the false information after he failed to persuade his girlfriend to not visit the Shanghai expo.

Police and airport officials initiated an emergency response and delayed eight flights for security checks. Second checks were performed on over 1,200 passengers and their luggage, causing economic loss of up to 200,000 yuan ($29,530), a court spokesman said.

Police traced Tian and arrested him on the same day after the information was confirmed to be false.