Stadium: No satisfactory explanation for terror hoax

Bryan Pearson said the fake terrorists' actions could have caused panic and injury to other guests of the stadium. File photo / Simon Baker

Newspaper publishers had no satisfactory explanation for sending people dressed as terrorist bombers into the AMI stadium, the venue's chief executive says.

The Sunday Star-Times commissioned people to dress as terrorist bombers and go to Super 14 games over the weekend at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton and Christchurch's AMI Stadium, run by council-owned company Vbase.

Vbase chief executive Bryan Pearson said he had talked to the newspaper, but found their explanation for their stunt unsatisfactory.

"Their actions could have caused panic and injury to other guests of the stadium. We have some very serious concerns about it and finding it very difficult to understand any rationale at all for undertaking a stunt of that nature, when today in New Zealand there is no threat or risk of that sort."

The stadium's security had no need to prepare for terrorist bombers, he said. It was in constant talks with police and if the need arose, the stadium would make it happen.

"It was a ridiculous stunt... We are not satisfied. We will read their article with interest then consider our position from there."

Police Minister Judith Collins earlier slammed the Fairfax-owned Sunday Star-Times' stunt as"stupid".

"They gained access to public areas, the players tunnel and corporate hospitality areas and police attending the event were not advised of these activities," she said.

"This was incredibly stupid. If anybody had been discovered, then it is likely the games would have been called off. There could have been panic in the stadiums, people could well have been evacuated, and whenever you have a large crowd, people could have been injured.

"At a lot of these games there are children, elderly, people in wheelchairs. For the sake of a silly newspaper stunt, they have put other people at risk because of what would have happened if one of them had been discovered."

She said it was pure chance that they were not detected, and there was not an incident at the stadiums.

"They had fake bombs on them. It's very dangerous behaviour and so stupid it beggars belief. I find it hard to believe how any responsible newspaper editor would think that was a useful action to undertake for the sake of a story."

She did not know details of how many there were or what they were wearing, as police were advised by event organisers after the weekend.

She had a message for the Star-Times: "I'm asking them to act like adults and don't be so silly by putting people at risk."

Police spokesman Jon Neilson said police had been looking into whether there had been an offence committed.

"At this stage, in what we know, it doesn't appear any offence was committed.

"We've made our feelings known to the publication and we're leaving at that [for now]."

Since neither the venue nor police were alerted about the bomb threat stunt, police's anti-terrorism response was not involved, Mr Neilson said.

"We've had plenty of experience with other bomb threats ... This is different altogether."

The Sunday Star-Times' said they had no comment to make on the issue.

- With NZHERALD STAFF