ARMED police surrounded a train in South Yorkshire and a railway station was evacuated after a passenger on board claimed he was a suicide bomber.
The drama broke out on the Leeds to Sheffield train just before it arrived in Barnsley at around 4.40pm yesterday.
A passenger was overheard claiming to be a suicide bomber and saying he had a bomb inside his bag.
Staff on the train who were
alerted by another passenger immediately called ahead and the emergency services were alerted.
A police armed response unit was waiting at Barnsley railway station and the train was "locked down" - to prevent anyone leaving.
The station had already been evacuated and sealed off and the passengers were then safely escorted one at a time off the train.
The man, who is understood to have learning difficulties, was then arrested under the Terrorism Act and his bag was searched but no explosives were found. He has since been released without charge.
The station was reopened at around 6.15pm and the evacuated passengers got back on board to continue their journeys.
Det Insp David Beldison, from British Transport Police, said: "The co-ordinated response carried out by British Transport Police, South Yorkshire Police and the railway company shows how any security threat is dealt with promptly and positively.
"Whilst any inconvenience and disruption to the travelling public is regretted, public safety is our number one priority and we would like to thank all those people who were evacuated for their patience."
READ MOREMore Barnsley newsMain news indexLatest sport.Readers' LettersHolidays and TravelCheck out the very latest on South Yorkshire's roads - including live traffic cameras on Sheffield's commuter routes - with our Traffic sectionThe full article contains 294 words and appears in Sheffield Star newspaper.
