SAN ANTONIO — A San Antonio man is accused of threatening mass violence and harassing 911 dispatchers, behavior that police say intentionally wasted critical resources.
Authorities allege Maxwell Sartell, 29, abused San Antonio's emergency response system, to the extent that the city is listed as "victim" on arrest records.
"It's not a game, this is real life," said Sgt. Washington Moscoso of the San Antonio Police Department (SAPD). "We take every call seriously."
Between Sept. 1 and Nov. 30, police say, Sartell sent 21 text messages to 911, many of them explicit or profane. Among them: "The bomb tonight will finally show you what I mean," "Now time to go to the airport to give out some *freedom*" and "I need to be stopped or else I will kill a random person."
On Dec. 1, investigators say he sent this message: "i think ive sent police around 1000 texts or so just to waste their time. lol."
That message led to his arrest.
Because every 911 call that comes in is treated the same, Moscoso says these kinds of prank calls affect those suffering in real emergencies.
"It's wasteful," he said. "Not only on personnel time, but also the gas that's used to get the vehicles over there. We are going to send officers there, pulling resources from people who may actually need the police."
Sartell has been charged with terroristic threat causing public fear and abuse of 911. He was booked into the Bexar County jail on a $115,000 bond but has since been released after posting bail.
He is next scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 2.
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