GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) — In early October, the Brown County Public Safety Communication Center started receiving multiple anonymous 911 calls for service on Seville Dr. in the Village of Bellevue.
The complaints ranged from disturbances, drug allegations, and weapons calls. Each call was dispatched on its merit and officers responded, investigated and concluded the reports were unfounded or false. By mid-December, there were 18 documented unfounded calls for service.
Village of Bellevue Directed Enforcement Officers, along with the assistance of 911 call takers and dispatchers, patrol officers, investigators and crime analysts started to narrow in on a suspect of the repeated unfounded 911 calls.
After a brief timeframe of no calls, the calls resumed on Jan. 1, 2023. Law enforcement was quick to respond to the resurgence of calls and on Jan. 4, 2023 at 3:30 p.m., Holly A. Arcand was taken into custody and booked into jail on 3 counts of Swatting, 5 counts of Misuse of 911, and 17 counts of Obstructing.
Knowingly making false 911 complaints is both criminal and creates a safety risk to citizens. Officers are responding, sometimes lights and siren at elevated speeds, when in fact no true emergency exists. Or sometimes, someone experiencing a true emergency may have delayed response due to the suspicion of the call being false.
Captain of the Brown County Sheriff’s Office, Jody Lemmens, said unfounded calls create extra work for dispatchers.
“We’re thinking about all those other calls; the true emergencies that come into our dispatch center during that time. All of our call takers are now second-guessing everything.” said Lemmens.
Incidents like these are a drain on resources and a disruption of services to those who truly need them. Persons found to be responsible for knowingly making false reports will be charged for their actions.
