Fire strike hoaxer jailed

Hoy made his first call 12 minutes into the strike

The first person in Scotland caught making hoax 999 calls during last month's fire strikes has been jailed for 21 days.

James Hoy, 51, previously admitted making several abusive calls just 12 minutes after the start of the action on 13 November.

At Perth District Court, Hoy was told he was being sent to prison as a warning to other potential hoaxers and that any future cases would be dealt with more severely.

Justice of the Peace Ben Stephen said: "I accept that you did not ask for a tender to attend, but you took up time with three phone calls which would have reduced the time they had to deal with genuine calls."

It beggars belief that someone, even in ordinary circumstances, would make such calls

Justice of the Peace Ben Stephen

Hoy, from Blairgowrie in Perthshire, was arrested in November shortly after the first firefighters' strike began.

Hoy used the 999 number, but made no attempt to mask his own
telephone number and was quickly traced to his home.

Mr Stephen said: "It beggars belief that someone, even in ordinary circumstances, would make such calls.

Verbal attack

"This could potentially have put lives at risk by diverting limited resources we now have away from serious and genuine incidents," he added.

Hoy told the court he disagreed with the strike and wanted to register his disgust at firefighters.

Depute fiscal Nicola Gillespie said Hoy made no reference to a fire, but verbally attacked the operator with foul language.

Hoy was verbally abusive to 999 operators

When Tayside Police went to Hoy's home he admitted making the calls. He told them: "I just hate the fire brigade. I hate what they have done.

"They are meant to protect us and this is what they do. I'm angry - that is why I called them."

Solicitor Jamie Baxter said his client was an alcoholic who made the calls after a heavy bout of binge drinking.

"He accepts his behaviour was ridiculous and a dumb thing to do and there was no excuse for using the line as he did," he said.

Mr Baxter added that his client was on medication and had been in hospital for detoxification programmes.

He urged the court to avoid sending Hoy to jail, but social workers told the court in a report that Hoy posed a serious risk of re-offending.