Man Faces Judge After MIA Bomb Scare
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- A man who police said caused the evacuation of Miami International Airport (MIA) terminals after a fake bomb threat faced a judge on Thursday.
Manuel Alvarado was into bond court where a judge increased his bond from $12,500 to $50,000.
Click here to watch Peter D'Oench's report.
A special prosecutor told the judge Alvarado's fake threat led to the evacuation of two MIA terminals which impacted travel plans for thousands of passengers on Wednesday.
"We have zero tolerance, zero tolerance for this type of behavior," said Special Prosecutor Frank Ledee.
Alvarado's attorney Brian Bieber said it was a misunderstanding between Alvarado and the gate agent. He said the gate agent asked Alvarado a series of questions about explosives and misinterpreted his answers.
"There was no serious threat and there was no explosive device," said Bieber.
Alvarado, who is a prominent neurosurgeont in Venezuela, was booked for a flight from Miami to Caracas, Venezuela.
Airport officials said he made a comment about having explosives in his luggage during check-in. They also said he later stated that he was joking about having explosives.
Police said no explosives were found inside his bag, but as a precaution Miami-Dade Police bomb squad removed the suspicious bag.
Alvarado is charged with criminal mischief and possessing a hoax bomb.
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