On Monday, five people were arrested for filming and staging a bomb hoax on a Shenzhen metro back in mid-May.
After thorough investigation, authorities determined the incident was an attempt to make a viral video.
On May 17, one of the suspects, surnamed Wu, started yelling on the metro, “Get down! Bomb!” while playing a video game on his phone. It’s not an unusual sight to see gamers berating their phones – but this time Wu’s friends joined in on the prank by ducking, running and shouting for help. However, because there were not enough passengers onboard Shenzhen Metro Line 7 at the time, the suspects didn’t create the panic they were hoping for. Determined to cause chaos, the pranksters decided to roll back the film for a second take.
Ten minutes after their initial attempt, as the train was pulling into Huaqing South Station, the suspects were ready to pull the prank again. For a second time, one of them shouted, “Everyone duck, bomb, bomb!” This time, a mass of surrounding passengers fled and ran to both ends of the car. The car proceeded to stop at Huaqiang South for four minutes which ultimately caused delays across the whole subway system.
Image via giphy
After the incident, the Futian Prosecutor General’s Office reviewed the case and used precedent cases to determine the punishment.
The five suspects were found guilty of intent to cause fear, and behaving in an offensive manner in a public place. They may be sentenced to five years in prison or criminal detention.
The case is currently under further investigation.
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[Cover image via Weibo]
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