Peterborough 999 hoax caller jailed - again

Rhys Pilott, 30, was jailed for 16 weeks last week after admitting causing a public nuisance.

He was previously jailed in 2019 and in 2020 fir similar offences.

Peterborough Magistrates’ Court heard how Pilott called Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue’s control room in the early hours of 24 June, claiming a house was on fire and leading to firefighters being deployed. He called back a further five times that night but no further firefighters were deployed.

Later that night he moved to the East of England Ambulance Service and reported a “serious crash”, which resulted in paramedics being deployed.

Pilott, of Crown Mews, Peterborough, was arrested a short while later and told officers he was “bored” and phoned emergency lines as a “hobby”.

He was sentenced to 16 weeks in prison at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 23 August, after pleading guilty to causing a public nuisance.

He was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £128.

PC Khaled El Jizzi said: “Hoax calls into emergency services risk lives because they take resources away from people who are in genuine need of help.

“The question I’d ask a hoax caller is: how would you feel if your friend or family member couldn’t get emergency help because a call handler was dealing with a hoax caller?”

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