Simon Beynon, 45, of Pond Close, Overton, was sentenced to 16 months in prison at Winchester Crown Court on August 31. He had previously been convicted of persistently using a public communication network to cause annoyance, inconvenience, or anxiety, as well as violating a criminal behaviour order. Beynon made his first call to the police control room on his mobile phone on Saturday, October 23, 2021, at 9.36 p.m., and continued to do so intermittently until the following morning – a total of 45 times. Beynon did not speak to the call takers on each occasion; only muffled noises could be heard, and he ignored their interactions. He had already called 21 times by 22.06pm, and a television could be heard in the background during this call. By dialling 999 without a genuine emergency, Beynon violated a two-year Criminal Behaviour Order imposed by North Hampshire Magistrates’ Court on 12 May 2021, following a conviction for the same offence on 1 April 2021. Beynon’s actions took valuable time away from our call takers, who should have been helping people experiencing genuine emergencies,” said Supt Anna Skelton, Contact Management Senior Delivery Manager. Our employees work under extreme pressure and frequently deal with people in their darkest hour, so treating them with such contempt is abhorrent. We have been dealing with extremely high call volumes from the general public in recent weeks, so this is a timely reminder to only dial 999 in an emergency. I hope this sentence sends a clear message that making prank calls to 999 is a serious offence punishable by imprisonment
