A gifted chess player faces a fabulous fine for a bad joke (9 photos + 1 video)
A British chess genius who called himself a Taliban and joked that he would blow up an easyJet plane appeared in court on January 22. 
Student Aditya Verma was summoned to appear in court in Madrid after he was charged with disturbing public order.
In July 2022, two Spanish military fighter jets were scrambled after a former pupil at St Olave's Grammar School in Orpington, Kent, said he was a Taliban and was planning to blow up the plane he was on from the UK to Minorca, Spain. 
A prank gone wrong could jeopardize Aditya's admission to Cambridge University
Spanish authorities have not released the indictment but have confirmed they will not seek jail time. 
Verma with mother
According to some reports, if convicted, the 20-year-old will have to pay compensation in the amount of 82 thousand pounds sterling for lifting two F18 fighters from a military base in Zaragoza to escort the plane approaching Minorca.
They also want to fine him £19,500. 
Aditya, who has represented England in several international chess tournaments and once met legendary player Garry Kasparov, was detained after he texted friends on Snapchat: "I'm going to blow up this plane. I'm a Taliban." 
The chess player sent the message shortly before taking off from London Gatwick Airport. As a result, British intelligence services learned about his plans and contacted their Spanish colleagues. 
The guy was flying on vacation with five friends, and they were all taken to the local police station for questioning.
Verma was taken from the plane in handcuffs and spent two days in police custody before appearing before a judge in Mahon. He was released on £8,600 bail and allowed to leave Spain.
When Verma returned home to London, he was interviewed for two hours by MI6 and MI5 intelligence officers about his views on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He admitted in an interview: "It was a moment of madness that I regret, and I'm very sorry that I caused trouble. I'm sorry that I ruined my friends' holiday, but it was just a joke and I didn't want to scare anyone on the plane." ".
Passengers were kept at the airport for four hours while the plane was checked
"I sent a Snapchat message to my friends as we were boarding. It was a joke because we were discussing who would get stopped and searched by security. It's a stupid thing to do, but I thought only my friends would see it in a private chat."
Aditya described himself in a recent post on LinkedIn: "Economics student at the University of Bath with interests in macroeconomics, financial modelling, history and share markets."
A hearing on the case took place last Monday. The defendant told the judge: "I had no intention of causing harm or suffering. I just wanted to go to Spain with my friends to enjoy the good weather, Spanish football and nightlife."
The court's decision has not yet been announced.
