MISCHIEVOUS WOMAN

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 109, 11 May 1933, Page 9

MISCHIEVOUS WOMAN

BOGUS TELEPHONE CALLS

FIRE BRIGADE SUMMONED

(By Taleiraph.) (Special to "The Evening Post.") AUCKLAND, May 10. :' Two essential public services, the St, John Ambulance and the City Fir* Brigade, were troubled' yesterday by| bogus telephone calls, believed to hay» been given by the person responsible for frequent annoyances caused to' business people of the city and suburb* recently. To send a fire engine and an anibuV lance' on useless errands was a par* ticularly mean act,'since both organisa* tions aro invariably profapt to answeij calls and are not in a position to taka the risk'of neglecting a summons. Theyj were therefor^ easy victims of the per* son, said''""to'*be ?a woman, who tele* phoned false messages. The telephonoi message, given in a woman's voice,' was received by the City Fire Brigado at 11 a.m., to the effect; that;" the bri« gade's services wore required at 92Queen Street. The person rang off be* for any other information could :;b«i obtained. Mr. W. L. Wilson, superin/i tendent of the Auckland Fire Brigade,said later that ■he . was suspicious of the call, but could not afford,to maka a mistake and there would have been a grave risk if it had been ignored, Only ono machine was scut, however, instead of two as in a case when thcra is no doubt that, the call is genuine^ - The supposed location' of the fire was at Horseley 's Pharmacy, Limited, but the staff in the shop had no knowledge* of any outbreak and were surprised to see the brigade outside. It is only a few weeks since a brewer's truck was sent to the same address to deliver ;» keg of beer that had never been genuinely ordered. In the second instance, the St. John Ambulance was called by telephone ta an address in Graf ton Eoad. Th» resident concerned had no knowledgo of the call and did not requiro tho services of the ambulance. Efforts to detect the offender are being made by the police in conjunction with tho Post and Telegraph Depart* ment. The penalty for such offences under the Post and Telegraph Act,, 1928, is a fine of up to £100 or imprisonment .. for a maximum , term of twelve months. ' •