The police department, fire department, and ambulance service have been getting false calls for more than a month. That’s not unusual — every emergency service gets some of these calls.

It’s 10 days before Christmas, and according to the Associated Press these fake calls are coming in at a higher rate than usual. Cops, firemen and paramedics are comparing notes. Sure enough, there are similarities.

Over the past two months there’ve been false reports of six auto collisions, four house fires, a gas leak, and four medical emergencies.

The cops find out all of these 911 calls are coming from the same cell phone number, but no address is available to identify the subscriber. So the cops, firemen, and paramedics get their heads together and work out a strategy.

"We’ll call the guy’s cell phone," says a detective, "and then sucker him into coming right to us." The problem is — how can they entice the guy out into the open?

A paramedic (with a sympathetic voice) makes the call. He tells the cell phone guy he’s won an $800 gift card in a city-wide drawing. The paramedic asks the guy for his name and address so they can mail him the gift card.

"That won’t work," says the cell phone guy, "I need the gift card right away so I can buy my girlfriend a Christmas present. Can I pick up the card tonight"

The cops are quietly dancing in the street. They tell the guy the store manager will meet him at the front entrance at 8 o’clock. The guy arrives right on time — and the cops lock him up.

But this guy is arrogant. "You can’t prove a thing," he says. But a Circuit Court judge disagrees and finds the evidence sound enough to send 15 felony charges to the grand jury.

Protesting on his way to jail, the cell phone guy yells back at the cops and firemen, "I was doing the taxpayers a favor...making you people go to work for a change."

Have a nice Christmas, Mr. Cellphone Guy, at the CrossBar Motel!