An emergency medical technician has been arrested for allegedly getting out of his ambulance to place a fake 911 call about a man in cardiac arrest, trying to divert his crew from responding to a call about a sick child in another borough.
William Medina, 27, was charged Friday with falsifying business records, obstructing governmental administration and falsely reporting an incident -- all misdemeanors.
According to a criminal complaint and a Department of Investigation probe by the city, Medina had just completed a transport in Queens Aug. 19 when his unit was assigned to respond to a sick child with a possible high fever in Brooklyn.
In an attempt to stay in Queens, Medina allegedly got out of his ambulance and used a pay phone in the borough to place a 911 call for a higher priority cardiac arrest stating that a man at 74th Street and Roosevelt Avenue was not breathing and could possibly be dead, according to DOI.
His unit ended up responding to another call in Queens about a sick individual; another crew ultimately responded to the sick child. Emergency personnel called to the scene at 74th Street and Roosevelt Avenue found no man in distress.
Authorities say security video showed Medina getting out of his ambulance and walking to the pay phone where the fake 911 call was placed.
Medina resigned in late August amid the investigation into the hoax call. He had been an EMT since October 2014. Information on an attorney for him wasn't immediately available.
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“Fabricating a high-priority emergency call is a crime that diminishes resources available to respond to other serious calls," DOI Commissioner Mark G. Peters said in a statement. "As charged, this defendant selfishly created a crisis and undermined public safety as a result."
