Prankster who left 26lb of dynamite in a friend’s car for ‘a joke’ faces two years in prison after pal failed to see the funny side and called police

• Police had to evacuate local buildings after the victim reported the ‘joke’ 

A Finnish man faces up to two years in prison after storing 26.5lbs of dynamite (12kg) in two cars belonging to a friend ‘as a joke’, Finnish broadcaster YLE said Wednesday.

The owner of the cars failed to see the funny side and instead told the police, who briefly detained the prankster, who has not been named.

The man was eventually freed but remains a suspect in the case, having admitted to placing the explosives on August 3.

Tony Rauma, detective chief inspector with the Ostrobothnia Police, told YLE: ‘According to his own words, he had done it as a joke.’

Police have also ruled out any possible terrorist intent but the suspect now faces up to two years in prison.

A police car patrolling the Market Square in Turku, Finland, 19 August 2017. A man was detained in western Finland after storing explosives in a friend’s cars ‘as a joke’

A bomb squad evacuated homes nearby and police recovered 26lb of dynamite from two cars

Mr Rauma with the local police told YLE the men knew each other and live in a small village in the Pedersore area of Ostrobothnia, western Finland.

He said that a police bomb squad had to evacuate nearby buildings due to the large quantity of explosives, and that both dynamite and detonators were recovered.

The prankster said he did not intend to detonate the explosives. 

It was not known where the explosives came from.

But Rauma said the suspect has access to a deserted house ‘where the dynamite may have come from’. 

According to YLE, the man has been released on bail. 

The explosives offence carries a maximum sentence of two years in jail. 

Source: Read Full Article