Bomb hoax alert: Man in court on hoax charges

A 19-year-old man has appeared at court via video link today accused of deliberately causing a bomb alert that led to the evacuation of Cabot Circus shopping centre.

Daniel Davies, of Crow Lane, Henbury, is charged with placing an item with the intent for another person to believe it may ignite or explode.

Cabot Circus was cordoned off during the bomb scare in August

There was a plea and case management hearing this morning at Bristol Crown Court.

He is due to go on trial in February, but there will be another hearing in the meantime next month.

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At about 2pm on August 21, the 19-year-old is alleged to have left a briefcase near the Next store in Hollister Street, which was later reported to police as suspicious.

The entire shopping centre was evacuated for several hours, as were many shops in Quaker’s Friars and Broadmead, affecting thousands of people.

Roads within a 100-metre radius were closed as a bomb disposal team carried out a controlled explosion on the briefcase, which was found to contain no explosives.

Davies was later arrested and charged with the bomb hoax.

District Judge Parsons deemed the allegation “too serious” to be heard at the magistrates’ court – where the maximum prison sentence that can be imposed is six months – and the case was sent to the city’s Crown Court.

The city was brought to a standstill by the bomb alert, which led to several hours of delays and traffic jams on major routes in and out of the city, including the M32, Fishponds Road, Easton Way, St Philip's Causeway and Coronation Road.