‘Bored’ 999 caller jailed for belching down phone

A MAN of 28 who repeatedly dialled 999 and belched down the phone line at call handlers has been jailed for 24 weeks.

Rhys Pilott made 13 nuisance calls on one occasion in September and 19 on the second.

Prosecutor Anthea Harris said the defendant was ‘audibly belching down the line’. She added: ‘When he was arrested, he said, “If you’re bored, prank call the police. It’s fun.” ’

Pilott admitted causing a public nuisance and persistently using a public communication network to annoy and inconvenience. He sat with his arms folded as he appeared by videolink for sentencing by Peterborough magistrates yesterday.

Michelle Canagasuriam, mitigating, said Pilott’s offending was not ‘malicious or callous’. She added: ‘He does this partly due to boredom. It was a need to be a someone who could make things happen.’

But District Judge Ken Sheraton said Pilott ‘knows what he’s doing’. Pilott also admitted outraging public decency and threatening behaviour over a separate incident.

He has 12 previous convictions for ‘similar type offending’, including three bomb hoaxes.