Highlands Ranch man arrested for causing airport shut down with bomb joke

Peter Friesema was arrested after joking that his friend's bag contained a bomb at the Anchorage International Airport.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A Highlands Ranch man is facing several charges after an off-the-cuff comment about a bomb in a piece of luggage.

His so-called joke caused officials to shut down the main terminal at Anchorage International Airport for at least two hours Sunday.

Officials said Peter Friesema made the comment: “My friend’s bag has a bomb in it,” after it was tagged by a ticketing agent.

Friesema was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. But he could be facing more charges, including making terrorist threats.