Elderly joker sparks alert

The Balearic security forces have been forced to deal with their first suspect package - only for the alarm being raised over a hoax letter. The “joke” was played by an elderly Palma resident on his elderly neighbour and the National Police have ordered that the practical joker be issued with a judicial warning. According to National Police sources, the elderly man, whose identity has not been revealed nor has he been arrested, sent his neighbour a good wishes letter containing sugar on October 24, despite the fact it was not his neighbour's birthday. In view of the current situation and advice issued last week by the local government on what to do in the event of receiving a suspicious package, the elderly woman decided not to open the envelope and immediately alerted the National Police. A police unit, complying with all the new bio-chemical threat precautions and regulations, arrived within minutes and took the suspicious package away for testing at a laboratory at Son Dureta hospital in the city. Once the police had possession of the package, the neighbour appeared on the scene and admitted that the letter “was a joke.”