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Twitter bomb joker found guilty

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Updated A man who jokingly threatened to blow Doncaster airport "sky high" back in January has been found guilty of sending a threatening message.

Paul Chambers, 26, posted the misconceived microblogging update on 6 January, after bad weather forced the Yorkshire airport to shut up shop a week before he was due to fly to Ireland. The message (below) was spotted by managers at Doncaster's Robin Hood Airport, who complained to the police.

Crap! Robin Hood Airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your shit together otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!

Off-duty manager Shaun Duffield who stumbled across the offending Tweet days after it was made told a court on Monday that the message was not taken as a credible threat and had no operational effect on the airport. Even so the prosecution continued.

Chambers, of the Balby area of Doncaster, who lost his job as a finance supervisor as a result of the prosecution, initially pleaded guilty to offences against the Communications Act in February before changing his plea to "not guilty" in March.

However, at a trial at Doncaster Magistrates' Court on Monday he was found guilty of sending a threatening message despite testifying that it never occurred to him that anyone would take the "innocuous hyperbole" in his message as serious. Chambers was ordered to pay a £385 fine and £600 costs by district judge Jonathan Bennett, The Telegraph reports.

An update on Chambers' @pauljchambers Twitter account blames prosecutors for bringing the case. "I'd like to thank the CPS for their level-best efforts in fucking up the life of an ordinary citizen. I love Britain."

Chambers went on to suggest he was considering an appeal. ®

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