The baggage with the words 'Bomb to Brisbane' at the carousel of the Brisbane International Airport. (Yahoo7 News)

News18.com

Updated on: April 6, 2018, 1:45 PM IST

April 6, 2018, 1:45 PM IST FOLLOW US ON: Facebook Twitter Instagram

Brisbane: A portion of the Brisbane Airport was cordoned off on Wednesday after a package with the words 'Bomb to Brisbane' made its way along a baggage carousel.

Passengers at the Airport were removed from the area and a traveller who noticed the bag said she thought it was a joke, reported Yahoo7 News.


The Australian Federal Police, though, did not take the initial alarm raised lightly. "The Australian Federal Police responded to reports of a suspicious item of baggage at Brisbane International Airport this morning. An area near a baggage carousel was cordoned off and the item was examined in accordance with routine protocols and was not deemed to be suspicious," a spokesperson of the Police force said.

It later turned out that the suspicious piece of luggage belonged to an elderly lady who was travelling from Mumbai to Brisbane. In order to identify her bag, the lady had meant to write 'Bombay', not bomb.


Venkata Lakshmi (65) arrived in Brisbane from Mumbai on Wednesday only to be interrogated by the Federal Police.

Talking to Yahoo7 News, Lakshmi's daughter Devi Jothiraj said that her mother was mortified about the "mix-up".


"She was pulled into a room and interviewed. My mother told me they thought something was in there and people were panicking. They asked her to open the bag and asked her why it says bomb and she said — It's for Bombay!" said Jothiraj.