Harrow: Hear abuse of London 999 operators in more than 2,000 crank calls

A woman has been jailed after abusing operators as she dialled 999 more than 2,000 times in three years.

Sonia Nixon, 56, from Harrow, has been sentenced to 22 weeks in prison.

Nixon called the emergency line 1,194 times in 2023 alone, putting her within the top three repeat callers, according to the Met. The force said she used 17 different mobile numbers to dial the call centre between 2021 and 2023, making her the fifth worst caller in that time.

Nixon was arrested on January 10 near Harrow on the Hill for 668 breaches of the Communications Act 2003, and charged for 670 offences. Police said after being arrested, she racially abused an officer and was further arrested before urinating in the caged van and being arrested for criminal damage.

The force estimates that she cost it about £4,500 in a five-month window due to her abuse of the 999 system.

Nixon was convicted on March 18 for the 696 calls made to 999, as well as four racially aggravated public order offences against emergency workers. She was given a five-year criminal behaviour order, including conditions of contacting 999 only in an emergency.

The Met says more than a quarter of calls made to emergency services do not have a policing purpose, with abusive callers costing it over £2 million, as well as preventing genuine emergencies from being answered.

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Superintendent Matt Cray said: “This was a superb result and testament to the hard work and dedication of the community policing team to bring Sonia Nixon to justice.

“She has been a massive drain on local and wider Met resources, consistently abusing our emergency workers with vile and racist behaviour, as well as causing a menace on the streets.

“The excellent work by officers in convicting Ms Nixon means we will be able to prevent further instances of her high volume calling and impact to the 999 service level, ensuring we can prioritise resources where they are really needed, and help restore trust and confidence in our local communities.”