A Florida man, unhappy with the size of his meal, called 911 twice on Dec. 18 to complain that a restaurant failed to serve an appropriately portioned meal.
Police arrested Nelson Agosto, 51, after he called 911 twice insisting that an officer come investigate the size of his clam meal at Crabby’s Seafood Shack in the city of Stuart, Florida, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The dispatcher informed him that because his issue was not an emergency, he had to call a non-emergency line and not emergency services. However, Agosto called again and reportedly insisted that an officer come immediately to investigate, according to the Associated Press.
“I ordered something, and it was extremely so small,” he said in phone call records released by the City of Stuart Police Department.
In the first 1 minute and 19 second phone call, Agosto said he wanted an officer to come visit, and the dispatcher told him a number would allow him to file a report. After several minutes, Agosto called back, complaining that the line was not working. “I tried that, but I couldn’t get through,” he said.
The dispatcher informed him the line was working, and he hung up the phone again.
A few minutes later, officers arrived as Agosto requested, but instead of charging the restaurant and filing the complaint via an offline survey app, they gave Agosto a court summons for the misdemeanor crime of misusing 911 services. Agosto told police when they arrived that he called a second time because he forgot the number for the non-emergency line, according to TCPalm.
The police report does not clarify whether Agosto paid his bill. He was arrested but not taken to jail, according to Sgt. Brian Bossio, police spokesman. His court date is scheduled for Jan. 11.
The City of Stuart Police Department tweeted audio recordings of the two phone calls, as well as a tweet informing people of the incident. “Stuart Police arrested Nelson Agosto by summons for misuse of 9-1-1. Agosto called 9-1-1 after consuming a meal and complaining about his food from a restaurant. Please leave 9-1-1 for emergencies,” the account tweeted Dec. 21.
In Florida, misusing 911 by calling for non-emergency purposes or with false reports is a misdemeanor. In 2010, a Bradenton man in Florida, 55-year old David Bouchard, was arrested for making 19 phone calls to 911 in the span of two months, according to CBS News.
