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Plymouth man 'ripped off by prostitute' at Christmas dials 999 Cold kebabs and 'rip-off prostitutes' among 999 calls
(about 2 hours later)
A man dialled 999 to complain he had been ripped off by a prostitute after a festive night out. Complaints about cold kebabs and clowns overcharging for balloons were just some of the ridiculous 999 calls made across England over the festive period.
It was among many ridiculous calls made to Devon and Cornwall Police over the Christmas period including one from a woman whose false nail had fallen off. The Met Police has released a list of 10 of the worst calls, including one about where to get a bacon sandwich.
Another woman called about a racing pigeon in her garden and a man wanted the police to deliver a pizza. Devon and Cornwall Police received a call from a man complaining he was "ripped off" by a prostitute.
Police said inappropriate calls increased waiting times for callers who genuinely needed help.Police said inappropriate calls increased waiting times for callers who genuinely needed help.
'Life-threatening emergency' Tambourine on kitten's head
The man called 999 to bemoan his treatment by a prostitute on Friday evening - known as "Black Eye Friday" because of the number of people out celebrating the last weekend before Christmas. Other nuisance calls to the Met included one from a woman who wanted officers to deal with a couple of noisy foxes outside her home and a man whose 50p coin was stuck in a laundrette washing machine and who wanted police to retrieve it.
Last Christmas an unnamed woman told a perplexed 999 call operator a racing pigeon had been in her garden for three days and asked for numbers of local pigeon fanciers. London Fire Brigade tweeted they were called to help a kitten that had a tambourine stuck on its head, using the tweet as part of a social media campaign to drive down nuisance calls.
Police staff told the woman the incident did not "constitute a life-threatening emergency". Devon and Cornwall Police also spoke to a woman whose false nail had fallen off, another about a racing pigeon in her garden and a man who wanted the police to deliver a pizza.
The force's two contact centres in Plymouth and Exeter receive more than a million calls each year. The public is urged to contact police via email in non-emergency situations.
Ch Supt Jim Nye encouraged the public to contact the police via email in non-emergency situations. Ch Supt Pippa Mills, of the Met, said: "Callers who do not have an emergency may prevent others who require our immediate assistance from getting through to us.
"This presents a real risk to our ability to respond to genuine emergency calls."
Ten time-wasting calls made to the Met Police were: