Uran Terror Threat Was a Hoax by Student Who Was “Seeking Thrill”

The girl had seen photos of ISIS members elsewhere and had signalled the alarm.

Navi Mumbai police outside the school, whose students had reportedly saw a group of armed men near a naval base in Uran, Maharashtra. (Photo: ANI)

The Uran terror threat, that had put Mumbai on high alert last week after two school children spotted suspicious men in pathan suits, turned out to be a figment of their imaginations – a hoax, reported The Times of India.

The “highest state of alert” had been issued by the Western Naval Command and the Naval Security Guard, and the police’s Force One were roped in for investigation.

The threat created panic for another 26/11-style attack and the children who signalled the alarm bells were questioned by police a multiple times.

The first report by the girl said that she had seen a few men with weapons, which led to air, land and water searches being conducted by the forces. But in the second investigation, she said that she had seen photos of the members of Islamic State elsewhere and it prompted her to report the fictional, suspicious men for “some thrill”.

As the agencies were exasperated by her confession, they did not press any charges but let her off with a warning and counselling about the consequences of such pranks.

Even though it was a false alarm, the only reason authorities were alerted was because other students of the school also said that they had spotted the same men.

Though such faux alerts remain a concern, we cannot afford to ignore any of them as, if proved correct, they are a valuable tool in preventing terror attacks. But frequent false alarms contribute to force fatigue and cost resources and money.

Officer to <i>The</i><i>Times of India</i>

(Source: The Times of India)