Lucknow: 10 Hotels Receive Bomb Threats Demanding $55,000 Ransom, Police Say 'No Suspicious Item Found'

Lucknow hotels have received bomb threats, prompting increased security measures. The threats followed similar threats in Gujarat's Rajkot, where bomb threats were later deemed a hoax.

Following recent bomb threats in Gujarat, several hotels in Uttar Pradesh's capital, Lucknow, have received similar warnings. An email threatening to blow up around ten hotels in the city has put the police on high alert, with investigations currently underway. The police said no suspicious items were found in the searches so far.

The targeted hotels include Hotel Marriott, Sarca Hotel, Pakdilia Hotel, Comfort Hotel Vista, Fortune Hotel, Lemon Tree Hotel, Clark Avadh Hotel, and Dayal Gateway Hotels. Upon receiving the threatening email, hotel owners promptly informed the police, leading to increased security measures outside these premises. 

"Bombs are hidden in black bags on the grounds of your hotel. I want $55,000, or I will detonate the explosives and blood will spread everywhere. Any attempt at defusing the bombs will detonate them," the bomb threat email stated, as per India Today's report.

Dog Squad and Bomb Disposal Squad conducted a search at a hotel in Lucknow after multiple hotels in the city received bomb threats, news agency ANI reported.

Ramesh Chandra Pandey, Sub Inspector Gautampalli told ANI, " The situation is normal, certain threat emails were received, based on which Bomb Disposal Squad was called, hotels were checked. No suspicious item was found...Bomb Disposal Squad checked around 5-6 hotels. It looks like an attempt to induce fear..."

Hoax Bomb Threats To 10 Rajkot Hotel

At least ten hotels in Rajkot, Gujarat, received bomb threat emails on Saturday, but the warnings turned out to be a hoax, according to police, news agency PTI reported. The threatening emails were received around 12:45 pm, prompting an extensive search of the premises by the police, aided by the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS).

Police Inspector SM Jadeja of the Special Operations Group (SOG) stated that the emails, sent by an individual identifying himself as "Kan Den," claimed that bombs had been planted in ten hotels and would explode within a few hours. The email read, "I placed bombs in every location of your hotel. The bombs will go off in a few hours. Many innocent lives will be lost today. Hurry up and evacuate the hotel."

Following the threat, security teams conducted a thorough search operation across the targeted hotels, which lasted for nearly five hours. However, no suspicious items were found, and the search concluded around 6 pm, as confirmed by Jadeja.

Authorities have launched an investigation to trace the origin of the emails and identify the sender responsible for the hoax.

The recent surge in bomb threats has raised concerns, with some media reports suggesting that over 150 flights have received similar threats in the last ten days.