Police and emergency crews in Orillia were sent scrambling on Wednesday evening after a series of 911 calls falsely reported fires and violent crimes, leading police to track down a young suspect reportedly responsible for the hoax.
Police say the calls began around 5:30 p.m., when firefighters and paramedics were dispatched to Front Street South for a reported structure fire.
After searching the area and finding no blaze, first responders asked police to help locate the caller, but police say the call turned out to be placed from an unregistered number.
About an hour later, police say they received another urgent call, this time claiming a 13-year-old girl had been shot and was bleeding in the middle of the road in the area of Elgin Street.
Roughly 10 officers and emergency personnel rushed to the scene, but no victim was found.
Police say 16 more radio calls “from the same voice” came in with similar details, all were high priority and utilized several resources.
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Around 7 p.m., officers say a young person was spotted using a cellular device in the reported area, so they had the OPP call-taker listen for a siren, which police activated. The call-taker confirmed the siren could be heard on the call.
Police say officers located the youth with a cell phone and determined all the calls that evening had been made from that device.
A 13-year-old was arrested and charged with theft, public mischief, and possession of stolen property.
The teen was later released and given a future court date.
