No Charges for Packing Items to Resemble Bomb
No charges will be filed against a Maine couple arrested at San Jose International Airport for packing materials to look like a bomb in their luggage and attaching a note deriding security workers, authorities said.
Paul Donahue, 50, and Teresa Wood, 46, both of Machias, Maine, were arrested Tuesday on suspicion of possessing a false bomb -- a felony -- after Transportation Security Administration workers discovered a snow boot with a battery pack and power strip attached to it in their luggage.
Airport screeners opened the suspicious bag after viewing it through an X-ray machine, and discovered the items with a note attached.
“To the uniformed puppet opening this -- congratulations. You’ve just brought this once-free nation one step closer to becoming a fascist police state,” the note read.
The couple had already boarded Delta Flight 576, scheduled to fly from San Jose to Atlanta, but were removed from the plane in San Jose and arrested.
Assistant Dist. Atty. Karyn Sinunu said Friday that no charges would be filed because the belongings in the suitcase were not a fake bomb.
Had the couple possessed such an item, they could have been sentenced to a maximum of three years in prison if convicted.
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