Fake bomb plan blows up in robber's face

Pudong New Area People's Court has sentenced a man to one year in prison after he attempted to rob a bank using a fake bomb.

The unemployed defendant, surnamed Pang, from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, threatened a branch of Citibank in the Marine Tower in Lujiazui with a fake bomb on January 16 and demanded 1 million yuan ($163,400).

Pang was found guilty of conveying fake hazardous substances, according to a press release the court issued Tuesday.

The release added that Pang came to Shanghai on January 1, and "came up with the idea of using a fake bomb to create a sensation in society." He used a cement cylinder to serve as the bomb, and used the remote control from a toy car as a bomb control.

Pang went to the Citibank branch at 1 Pudong Avenue around 12:30 pm on January 16, wearing a mask and carrying a bag with the "bomb" and "remote" in it. He asked to be received by the vice president for the bank and was invited to the VIP room.

The court release said Pang told the vice president that he had cash and gold bars to deposit.

The vice president, surnamed Zhou, found Pang to be suspicious and would not open an account for him after Pang refused to offer his personal information.

Pang then took out the remote control from his bag, claiming it controlled a bomb in the bag. He threatened to detonate the bomb if he was not given 1 million yuan.

Zhou started the bank's emergency plan and called the police. All the people in the building were evacuated.

Police overpowered Pang around 3:50 pm and found the bomb was fake.

The court release said a psychiatric examination showed that Pang did not have a mental illness. The court sentenced Pang to one year in jail. The court said the sentence was lenient because Pang confessed to his crime.