Melbourne: The staff of an Australian radio station, whose DJs made a prank call to a UK hospital that led to the death of an Indian-origin nurse, have received death threats, prompting some of them to move to safehouses.
About a dozen staff of Sydney-based 2DayFM radio station have been moved into safehouses and up to 10 executives have been assigned bodyguards following death threats against them, the Daily Telegraph reported.
The station management has recruited 24-hour security to guard the staff and the safehouse venue, costing the company an estimated USD 75,000 a week, the report said.
The development came after a threat letter was received on Thursday against Michael Christian, one of the DJs whose prank call led to the death of 46-year-old Jacintha Saldanha.
The letter, which came from South Australia, stated “bullets out there with your (Christian’s) name on it”. Further unreportable threats involving a shotgun were also made.
The letter was seized by detectives for examination.
The company said it was preparing at the long-haul, with specialist security expected to be in place for several weeks or months.
“We still have details to come from the hospital and the release of the suicide note. Depending on what comes from that could trigger more anger,” the paper reported quoting a source. (PTI)
