A man from Stamford Hill has been jailed after making a hoax bomb call he hoped would delay a flight he was running late for.

Jacob Meir Abdellak, 47, of Amhurst Park, Hackney, was arrested at Gatwick Airport on May 22. He was charged with communicating false information regarding a noxious substance likely to create serious risk to human health.

Abdellak had been late for a Norwegian Airlines flight from Gatwick to Los Angeles on May 11, and was denied boarding by airline staff.

An anonymous call was made eight minutes before the flight was due to depart, leading to a full re-screening of the flight.

However, police confirmed that the number used for the bomb hoax was the same as the one linked to Abdellak’s booking.

Abdellak, a French national, was arrested 11 days later when boarding another flight to Los Angeles.

On Tuesday afternoon, he was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court to ten months in jail and required to pay a £140 victim surcharge.

He had initially denied the charges, admitting the telephone number in question was his but claiming he had lost the SIM card a few days earlier and so could not have made the call.

However, on Tuesday, as the trial was due to begin, he changed his mind and pleaded guilty.

Gatwick Police Chief Inspector Marc Clothier said: “This was a quite ridiculous decision made by Abdellak, who fabricated an extremely serious allegation purely for his own benefit.

"He was running late for his flight and thought it would be a good idea to call in a hoax bomb, however this turned out to be the worst decision he could have made.

“His actions caused the flight to be delayed, and also caused a level of fear and distress among a number of staff and passengers on board that flight.

“The consequences of making allegations about bombs, guns or similar at densely populated locations such as airports are well documented, and Abdellak’s sentence serves as a warning to others that this sort of behaviour will not be tolerated and offenders will be dealt with robustly.”