CORAM, N.Y. (1010 WINS) — A Suffolk County man was arrested on Monday for making repeated phony 911 calls over a two-year span, including at least one pretending to be an NYPD officer.
Andrew Welcom, 34, made a 911 call on Aug. 18, reporting a woman had been assaulted and "any law enforcement officer who attempted to enter a Lake Ronkonkoma home to help her would be shot," police said in a statement.
However, when officers arrived at the scene, they discovered that no one in the home was in danger and that there were no problems.
Officer Danielle Congedo investigated a similar pattern and discovered four additional "swatting" calls linked to Welcom starting in November 2020.
The calls all reported a suspicious person or crime, and all were determined to be unfounded, police said. During at least one of the phone calls, he identified himself as an NYPD officer.
Welcom was charged with five counts of falsely reporting an incident and two counts of criminal impersonation.
He was released on an appearance ticket and will be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip at a later date, police said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Fourth Precinct Crime Section officers at 631-854-8426.
