Dutch Priest Charged in Madonna Threat

Amsterdam prosecutors said Friday a 63-year-old priest has confessed to phoning in a fake bomb threat to a Madonna concert in the Dutch capital city last week.

'He was hoping to stop her from performing her famous 'crucifixion' act,' prosecution spokesman Robert Meulenbroek said, referring to a scene in the 48-year-old pop star's latest show.

The scene, a mock re-enactment of the crucifixion of Christ, offended some Christians during earlier concerts in Italy and Germany. Two Amsterdam concerts went ahead as planned on Sunday and Monday, despite a handful of protesters.

Meulenbroek said it was likely prosecutors would seek a community service punishment for the priest, since it was very likely this was his first such offense.

The priest was arrested almost immediately after making the threat Sunday, since he used his home phone to make it, and he called an emergency services number where the call was automatically traced.

The priest was brought before a judge Friday and has been released pending judgment, Meulenbroek said. 'We take bomb threats seriously, but in this case it was clear very quickly that it was not real,' he said.

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