BAO AN police detained a man following a bomb hoax at Wanfu Square in Fuyong Subdistrict, Bao an District, on Saturday.
The migrant worker, identified as Chen, called 110 at around 7 p.m. Oct. 1, the first day of the National Day holidays, saying he had seen someone placing a bomb at Wanfu Square.
Fuyong police immediately dispersed around 5,000 people in the square and mobilized more than 100 officers for a thorough search that lasted three hours, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported.
No explosives were found and police concluded the call had been a false alarm. Chen was later arrested at his factory dormitory.
He regretted making the call and said he had made it because he was not satisfied with his life. He also admitted to making a previous hoax call to police in Guangzhou and Shenzhen s Nanshan District.
Bao an police said they had received 60,000 hoax calls in September, resulting in a waste of police time and resources. According to the law, anyone making a hoax phone call can be detained for 15 days and fined 200 yuan (US$30).
In serious cases such as Chen s, where a bomb threat is made and there is serious disruption to public order, the offender can be jailed for up to five years.
The case is being investigated.
(Han Ximin)
