A suitcase containing plastic explosive was accidentally left at Sydney airport for three weeks by the Australian federal police in a serious training blunder.



The AFP released a statement on Thursday apologising for mistakenly leaving a training device at the airport – containing 230g of plastic explosive – in an unclaimed suitcase during a dog training exercise on 14 August. The AFP said the device was not live.

The admission is an embarrassment for the force, and follows repeated indications that Asio is actively considering raising Australia’s terror alert level.

The mistake was not discovered until 9 September, when a woman travelling through Sydney airport discovered the device. She had been offered the case as a replacement bag when her own luggage was damaged.

She took the case to Cessnock police station, where officers evacuated the building as a safety precaution, the AFP statement says.

AFP Sydney airport commander Wayne Buchhorn apologised for the incident.

“The AFP takes this error seriously and the canine instructor who inadvertently left this device behind has been identified and will be the subject of a formal professional standards investigation,” he said.

“Although the travelling public was not in danger at any time, we regularly review our processes in this area, and we will do again in the light of this incident.

“This type of training is essential for our canine teams, allowing the dogs to experience potential threats in a real environment.”

The mistake is the second serious error the AFP have been involved with in a matter of weeks. Guardian Australia reported in August that the force had accidentally published sensitive information that may have jeopardised criminal investigations.