Panaji: An anonymous email claiming that bombs had been planted in Goa’s courts triggered security searches at three court complexes on Monday, but the threat turned out to be a hoax.The Police Control Room received the email at around 3pm, following which a large contingent of police personnel, along with teams from the fire and emergency services, the anti-terrorism squad and the bomb disposal squad, launched searches.The teams thoroughly checked the high court building at Porvorim, the Margao district and sessions court and the North Goa district and sessions court complex at Merces.The threat and the presence of a large number of security personnel briefly triggered panic among court employees and others at the complexes.Officials said no suspicious material was found despite hours of searching. The threat was subsequently declared a hoax and all three court complexes were declared safe for use.Director General of Police Alok Kumar said the police would investigate the matter to establish the source of the email and identify those responsible for issuing the threat.This is not the first such hoax threat reported in the state this year. In March, the regional passport office in Panaji was placed on alert after an anonymous email claimed that an explosive device had been planted at Passport Bhavan.The email, sent to the office’s official account from a personal email address, warned of a blast and asked officials to evacuate members of the public by 11am or face the consequences. A thorough search of the premises found no explosive device, and the threat was declared a hoax.
