Posted on 03/06/2006 5:17:38 PM PST by Macaw
Buffalo emergency crews have become very familiar with one particular home on the West Side.
So far this year, they have received almost 1,000 emergency calls from the same home on 15th Street, seeking help for everything from shootings to fires to severely injured children.
The calls have one thing in common. They're fake.
Sometimes a dozen or more police officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians have rushed to the location. The situation has upset Buffalo Police and Fire Department officials, who hope the courts will take a hard line with two adults arrested in the incidents.
Juan Merced and Felicita Santiago-Merced face a variety of charges, including failure to properly supervise their nine children. The family lives at 78 15th St., the alleged source of the calls.
"It's very dangerous and very frustrating," said Brian K. Martinez of the city Fire Marshals office. "All these emergency responders get there, and the [residents] will just say, "We didn't call. We don't know anything about that.' Sometimes they laugh at us."
It is the city's policy to respond to all emergency calls, even at addresses where repeated fake calls have originated, authorities said.
19 cell phones used
At least 19 different cellular telephones have been used to make the calls, investigators said. On average, about 20 fake calls a day were made over a period of seven weeks. The calls continued, even though arrests were made and cell phones were seized from the home in January.
Merced, 49, and his attorney, Ayoka A. Tucker, denied the allegations late Friday during an interview at Tucker's law office. "Somebody is apparently making these calls, but it isn't this family," Tucker said. "They're wonderful people."
Martinez noted that investigators found a video camera set up to record people arriving at 78 15th. "They are keeping a log book of our times and responses," Martinez said.
He said the log book was seized by investigators during a court-authorized search of the home last month.
Investigators said they are trying to determine the motivation behind the fake calls. Tucker said the family is afraid of the police.
Santiago-Merced, 42, was charged with criminal facilitation on Thursday afternoon over several fake calls that reported a shooting at her address, police reported. She is accused of providing a cell phone to an unknown individual who made several false calls Thursday for help at 78 and 84 15th St.
Santiago-Merced was previously arrested on Jan. 15. In that case, she is charged with obstructing governmental administration, resisting arrest and endangering the welfare of a minor after she allegedly allowed some of her children - ranging in age from 5 to 17 - to repeatedly call 911 and make false reports, police said.
Juan Merced was charged that day with two counts of aggravated harassment, falsely reporting an incident and endangering the welfare of a child. He was also charged with escape after his wife allegedly opened the door of a police car to let him out.
But Tucker said she believes the Merced family may be the victims of someone else. "He and his family deny making any of these calls," she said. "These are cell phone calls. I haven't seen any tangible proof that these calls were made, or that they were made by this family."
Tucker said she believes that someone who dislikes the family may be making the fake calls in an effort to get the Merceds into trouble with the law.
Who would do that?
"We don't know," Tucker said.
Merced, who had eight of his children with him while visiting his lawyer on Friday, said the family has lived in the home less than a year. He said his wife home-schools their children, and he expressed pride in his children's behavior.
"Naturally, we are innocent," Merced said. "We have nothing to hide. I want to see the light of truth shining on this."
Lol
He had "eight of his children" with him at the lawyer's office. How many children does he actually have total?
They live in Buffalo...it's winter...yes, they're bored.
That is the most evil looking bunch I've ever seen.
I just realized the article is missing about 30% of it at the end. Read the source if you want to see it.
In the post-9/11 era, I find this to be particularly disturbing...
Is your refrigerator running?
And this is not terribly far from the Lackawanna-7 location.
(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")
I don't care what they say their name is, they sure look like Roma to me...
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