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Bomb threat: boy (18) has to pay for deployment

More than just a bad joke: the young lad now has to pay for the entire police operation.(Bild: Shourot Maurice)

In mid-December, an 18-year-old posted a bomb threat against a police station in Vorarlberg via Instagram. Not only was he arrested, he has now also received a hefty fine for his "prank". He will be charged for the entire police operation. He will also be fined in court. 

Such acts are anything but harmless pranks. Anyone who is active on social networks leaves digital traces - including the 18-year-old from Vorarlberg who posted a bomb threat in the form of six words against a police station on Instagram.

I am glad that the threat turned out to be a hoax and that there was no actual threat. We will continue to consistently charge the perpetrators of such incidents.

Landespolizeidirektorin Uta Bachmann

Police: "Social media is not a legal vacuum"
Specialists from the Vorarlberg police were quickly able to track him down and temporarily arrest him at his home in Wolfurt. After his cell phone was seized, the suspicion was confirmed: he had allegedly written the threat.

In addition to a possible court penalty, he must pay the full cost of the police operation of 1,450 euros - a legal basis for this is provided by the Security Police Act. The police emphasized that social media is not a legal vacuum and that criminal content will be consistently prosecuted.

18-year-old confesses to the crime
The threat resulted in a major police operation involving special units and IT investigators. As further investigations have shown, there was no danger to the public at any time. The man confessed to the crime and was unable to give a reason for the threat during questioning.