Mississauga man charged after bomb threat investigation at Waterloo Region airport

KITCHENER -

A 28-year-old Mississauga man is in custody after a bomb threat shut down the Region of Waterloo Region International Airport Monday.

In a news release issued Tuesday morning, the Waterloo Regional Police Service said he has been charged with uttering threats to cause death and mischief interfering with operation of property.

Members of the Explosives Disposal Unit were called in at about 2 p.m. Monday to determine if a bomb was on board.

Police said no explosives were found on the plane.

The Breslau airport was locked down Monday afternoon.

The airport tweeted that "delays to arrival and departure times should be expected" and asked travelers to check with the airline about the status of their flight.

Some flights were cancelled due to the incident.

“I’m exhausted. Just absolutely exhausted,” said passenger Mary Sasonow before boarding the flight that was originally cancelled Monday night.

She was planning on visiting family and friends in Vancouver.

“All of a sudden the captain said 'the passengers, everybody has to get off the plane, leave everything behind,'" she said. "We were corralled into a tent and at 10:30 that night that is eight hours later we were finally allowed to get our coats and luggage.”

Some passengers said a lot of rumours were circulating fast.

“He was telling passengers in the plane that he had a bomb and he had a lighter or something and I heard he was trying to set the airplane seat on fire,” said passenger James Macgowan, a B.C resident.

Harpreet Sidhu was visiting Waterloo Region for a wedding. She said she was disappointed she had to call in and miss work in Vancouver on Tuesday, but said it could have been worse. 

“The positive thing is we all are safe and sound,” Sidhu said. 

Some passengers said despite the inconvenience, staff was accommodating and provided them food and accommodations for the night.

“They actually brought in grief counsellors in case anyone was nervous to get back on the plane,” said Macgowan.

Flair Airlines released a statement on social media that said they were addressing a "safety concern that required a full search of the aircraft on flight F8 500." That plane, they explained, was scheduled to depart Waterloo Region at 2:10 p.m. for Vancouver International Airport.

The airline added that all passengers were deplaned as a precaution.

"They told us it was a male voice, and then after that a female voice saying get off the plane immediately, don't take any of your belongings, and we're disembarking immediately," said Barbara Dowling, whose flights to Vancouver was cancelled. "People had seen him and I had talked to some witnesses afterwards kind of where he was sitting and they said this guy was swearing and screaming a whole lot and yelling, so they took him off the plane."

Passenger Stefan Louter says he never felt in danger.

"I didn't think it was a bomb threat," he said. "Everybody's stuff is in there, even the pilot's stuff is still on the plane, and they can't get to it because it's still a bomb threat zone."

Both airport officials and Flair Airlines said they're grateful for everyone's cooperation. 
“We take it very seriously. So we’re well trained to be able to respond,” said Kristal Jodoin, Director of Airport Operations at Flair Airlines

The airport's general manager said other flights were still able to take off following the incident.

“We had two flights leave after the incident and we ensured that they were done safely and with full cooperation from the police,” said Chris Wood.

Airport officials said there will be a debrief with all parties involved later this week, to discuss what happened, how it was handled and if anything could be improved for any possible future threats.

Passengers waiting outside the Region of Waterloo International Airport after an alleged bomb threat. (Dec. 13, 2021)

Harpreet Singh said his plane to Edmonton was scheduled to depart at 3:30 p.m., but he and other passengers were told to stay off the property. At the time he was told his plane would be delayed by two hours.

"Obviously it's frustrating for us," he said. "We've been waiting. Before that we were worried, and even when we called the airline they said: 'we have no information about what's going on.'"

While some travelers returned home, Singh said he was going to wait outside the airport for an update on his flight.

Police said the Mississauga man remains in custody pending a bail hearing.

With reporting from CTV Kitchener's Colton Wiens and Heather Senoran