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MANCHESTER. — Greater Manchester’s mayor slammed the abandonment of Manchester United’s game with Bournemouth on Sunday over what turned out to be a fake bomb as “outrageous”, and called for a full inquiry.

Army bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion of a suspicious package, which was later revealed to be a dummy left behind by a private security company following a training exercise.

And the security expert whose company is being blamed for leaving a fake bomb inside Old Trafford is a former Met Police counter-terrorism officer who said yesterday the “fiasco” is likely to see his business go bust.

Chris Reid, owner of Kent-based Security Search Management & Solutions Ltd, says he is still waiting to hear from Manchester United but admitted: “I’m sure they’re having meetings at the moment to see which guillotine they’re going to use on me”. Manchester United was yesterday yet to say sorry, 24 hours after 76 000 fans were ordered to leave Old Trafford when an “incredibly lifelike explosive device” was found wired to pipes in a toilet just 20 minutes before kick-off.The terror alert is set to cost United £3 million as club sources admitted the “idiot” who left the fake bomb behind “is in for a right kicking”.

Fans were left in tears and even abandoned their bags and coats in the rush to leave the ground fearing their lives might be at risk. But police confirmed that the “bomb” was left at the stadium in error in the days leading up to the game, apparently after an exercise involving a company called Security Search Management and Solutions Ltd working with a sniffer dog team run by Deacons Canines.

Reid said his company is getting the blame for leaving the fake bomb and admitted he could lose his business over the scandal. Speaking outside his south London home Reid said: “I can’t say anything at the moment — I’m waiting for Manchester United to get back to me.

“Obviously, it’s a security issue. If it was any other sort of issue and I needed to put my side of the story then it would be different.” — AFP.