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Police: Drunk Man Makes Fake 911 Call Claiming To Be Seriously Injured

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HARRISON TOWNSHIP (KDKA) -- Emergency crews responded to an urgent call for help from a man who claimed to be hurt and bleeding in the woods, but when they arrived on the scene, they found the man wasn't really hurt at all.

A 911 call came in from a man claiming to have fallen down a hill in the woods in Harrison. He told police he was bleeding badly and about to pass out.

Investigators say none of that was true.

Police say 49-year-old David Thimons, of Tarentum, made the call. Investigators say he was most convincing, telling them he had to hang up the phone so he could take care of the bleeding and that there was a bone sticking out of his leg. He even went on to take pictures of his surroundings in the woods and post them on Facebook.

"He put a lot of people in danger. There were a lot of resources there looking for him and numerous people searching the woods for him," Officer Justin McIntire, of the Brackenridge Police Department, said, "and it was a fake call, a whole waste of resources."

Those resources include police officers from Harrison Township, Brackenridge, Tarentum and Fawn, fire departments, an ATV unit and a state police helicopter.

"He called 911 and talked to them about nine minutes," McIntire said.

Thimons denied making any calls, but his cell phone was found in a tree branch at the edge of the woods where he walked out.

"He was agitated and said we were wasting his time," McIntire said.

Police say Thimons was drunk and while emergency crews were looking for him, there were other emergencies.

"They had a couple of medical calls where there were no ambulances available for medical calls," McIntire said. "They had to go out of the jurisdiction."

This was a big deal. A command post was even set up in the parking lot of Trinity United Methodist Church.

Thimons was arrested and taken to the Allegheny County Jail. He faces a long list of charges, including false reports to law enforcement and public intoxication.

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