Wickford: Man charged in nuisance 999 call investigation

A man has been charged as part of an investigation into persistent and nuisance calls to the Essex Police force control room.

Between 1 January 2021 and 19 June this year, we received more than 3,000 nuisance calls from three numbers.

In each case, the calls were made to report complaints about GP waiting times, make sexually explicit comments and to ask for the time and the names of call takers.

As a result of extensive work, officers were able to identify a person of interest.

On Thursday 22 June, a 65-year-old man was arrested in Wickford.

Leonard Lowe, 65, of Appletree Way, in Wickford, has now been charged with persistently making use of public communication network to cause annoyance, inconvenience or anxiety.

He has been released on conditional bail appear at Basildon Magistrates’ Court on 13 July.

'We're focussed on the safety of our Essex public'

Chief Inspector Jamie Gingell, who leads our force control room, said:

“All emergency services work hard to answer emergency calls as quickly possible to be able to help people, keep victims safe and in our case, catch criminals.
“We want to be able to deliver the best and fastest service possible to protect people in their hour of need and get officers to where they are needed most.
“However, there are times when our ability to that is impeded and as a result, our response is slowed.
“We will not shy away from prosecuting those who place the wider public at risk though such misuse. I want to reassure to the Essex public that we are focussed on their safety and making sure they receive the service they deserve.”

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