Doctor gets probation for making Sea-Tac bomb threats

A Tennessee physician who phoned in three bomb threats to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport last year to keep his plane from leaving without him has been given three years of probation and ordered to 500 hours of free medical service to the poor.

Kou Wei "James" Chiu, 32, of Nashville, told U.S. District Judge Richard Jones that he realized he was fortunate for not going to prison, and said he was grateful for the "consideration" shown him by federal authorities and their recommendation for probation.

Chiu had faced up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Lang defended the government's recommendation for a lenient sentence, saying Chiu had a "unique constellation" of qualities, including no criminal history and the ability to pay back society with medical care.

Chiu claimed in court documents that he had failed to take his antidepressants responsibly in the days leading up to his arrest and that his "impulsive" action was connected to a "maniclike episode" brought on by fluctuating drug levels.

According to court documents, Chiu admitted calling in three bomb threats in July 2007 because he had missed boarding his Northwest Airlines flight and thought he could delay it. When the first and second calls from an airport pay phone had no effect, Chiu called in a third threat, indicating there was a bomb on board the flight, he admitted in a November guilty plea.

The third call prompted the plane to return to the airport, and it was grounded for several hours.

Chiu was arrested after people reported hearing him at the pay phones making the threats.

When Port of Seattle police confronted Chiu and asked him if he had made the bomb threats, Chiu replied: "Regrettably, yes, I did," according to court documents.

FBI investigators said he made the calls thinking Northwest "would ground the plane for a couple of hours," according to court papers.

Chiu had been on a business trip to Seattle and was flying home. He missed the flight, according to statements from his travel companions, because he was tinkering with his rental car's GPS device and wasn't paying attention to his driving.

He became angry, court documents allege, when a gate attendant barred him from boarding the plane he had only just barely missed.

Federal prosecutors said the incident cost Northwest Airlines more than $81,000, which Chiu was ordered to pay in restitution.

Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com