Man fined for wasting police time

He admits making false allegation and faking injuries

A 19-year-old man from Ashford has been issued with an £80 fixed penalty notice for wasting police time after falsely claiming he had been robbed.

He phoned Kent Police at 3.10 am on Tuesday 15 January to report that he had been robbed at knifepoint and had cash stolen.

More than 10 police officers, including a dog handler and detective, were called to the scene to carry out an investigation.

Officers became suspicious when the so-called ‘victim’ gave inconsistent accounts of what had happened.

He then admitted he had made the whole allegation up and had even self-harmed to make it look like he had been robbed at knife point.

He was interviewed and admitted making the false allegation and wasting police time.

No excuse!

Chief Inspector Phil Hibben, Ashford District Commander, said: ‘There can never be any excuse for wasting police time and diverting officers away from dealing with genuine calls for help.

‘Whilst officers were investigating this incident, they were not available to attend other genuine calls from the public, potentially putting lives at risk. We will always take action against people who deliberately make false reports of crime.’

Posted on: 16 January 2013