What to Know
- The NYPD says officers have arrested a woman for a bogus 911 call that was placed last Friday
- Officers are now investigating whether she is behind making more than 24,000 of these types of calls since the summer
- Yogita Persaud is facing charges of making a false report, obstructing governmental administration and aggravated harassment
The NYPD says officers arrested a woman for a bogus 911 call that was placed last Friday -- but they are now investigating whether she is behind making more than 24,000 of these types of calls since the summer.
The caller allegedly stated to the 911 operator there was a fire and smoke coming from the basement which subsequently caused multiple police and fire units to respond at the time of the call. In the end, officers arrested 38-year-old Yogita Persaud, of the Bronx, shortly after 2 p.m. Friday while investigating what turned out to be a false 911 call.
According to police, Persaud was charged with making a false report (fire), making a false report (emergency), obstructing governmental administration and aggravated harrassment.
Police say officers are investigating a pattern that involves more than 24,200 911 calls since June 2019 and 200 calls on the day of Persaud's arrest. She has not been charged with those incidents since it is under investigation whether she is responsible for those calls, police say.
However, police say she could be the person who tied up emergency lines for months.
The NYPD compiles a list of 911 bogus callers. According to police, Persuad ranks at the top if she is responsible for the thousands of prank calls.
Local
Police remind the public that responding to a prank call takes resources away from responding to a real tragedy.
Persaud told News 4 she has a lawsuit against the 47th Precinct but she wouldn’t elaborate further.
Attorney information for Persaud was not immediately known.
