Kota Kinabalu: A Chinese national who made a false bomb threat on an AirAsia flight was fined RM5,000 or three months’ jail at the Magistrate’s Court, here, recently.
The accused, Liu Jinqi, 28, pleaded guilty before Magistrate Dayang Aidaku Amira Aminuddin when the charge was read to her in Mandarin.
Liu was found guilty of criminal intimidation against AirAsia by sending a threatening bomb threat message through the Ask Bo application, which was read by an airline staff member at her residence in Taman Sri Balung at about 11.55am on Sept 20, 2025.
She was charged under Section 506 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum imprisonment of two years, or a fine, or both, upon conviction.
Prosecution was led by ASP Jeffrey Kadison, while Liu was represented by lawyer Chen Wen Jye.
In his submission, Jeffrey urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence as the offence was serious, caused unnecessary panic, and threatened public safety, even though the threat was not genuine.
Chen, however, appealed for a lenient sentence, citing that his client was a first-time offender, had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity, saving the court’s time, and had cooperated fully during the investigation.
He added that Liu’s husband, 29, who was arrested together with her, had been released.
Earlier reports stated that the couple was detained at a hotel in Semporna on Sept 22 around 8pm following a police report lodged by the airline’s security team.
Investigations revealed that the woman had admitted to sending the false threat through the airline’s official app in an attempt to get a faster response to change her seat on a flight from Tawau to Kuala Lumpur before transiting to Beijing on Sept 23.
“She claimed to have read on a Chinese news portal that making a threatening remark could prompt quicker responses from airlines,” said the source.
