False reports cause problems for law enforcement - CBS News 8 - San Diego, CA News Station - KFMB Channel 8

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (CBS 8) - Responding to 911 calls and investigating reported crimes takes time and resources, and when those calls turn out to be hoaxes, valuable time and money can go to waste.

The last time the county dealt with a fake report, it cost the sheriff's department thousands, with four patrol cars, the sheriff's helicopter, plus the child abuse and sex crimes unit.

"I had six detectives out that evening. We actually got people out of bed who were potential suspects," Sgt. Jeff Maxin said.

Deputies say the 12-year-old boy who filed the complaint described every last detail -- the street, the tattoos, but two days later the boy slipped up.

According to deputies, the boy confessed it was a hoax, making up the story to avoid getting punished for staying out past his curfew.

Captain Gary Wedge of the Chula Vista Police Department also recently dealt with a fake report, although he says the circumstances were much different.

A woman claimed she was grabbed and beaten while running through a Chula Vista park. It was later discovered it was her husband who was allegedly doing the beating.

"This was the only way she could get to the hospital for care," Capt. Wedge said.

Her attack claim left a community on alert and provoked a public forum that drew concerned neighbors.

Police ended up arresting her husband, 23-year-old Vicky Nikhil Pathak and arraigned him Thursday on torture, assault and false imprisonment. He pleaded not guilty.

"We go into every incident believing what we are told is true," Capt. Wedge said.