Armed police swoop on home in Slegness after bogus call

A court has heard how armed police were sent racing to an address in Skegness after a 24 year old woman said her partner was coming for her armed with a shotgun.
News from the courtsNews from the courts
News from the courts

Prosecuting at Boston Magistrates Court, Shelley Wilson said police received a call at 10.45pm on September 17 from Chelsea Marie Collingwood, now of Lancaster Avenue, Skegness to tell them that the 'father of her unborn child' was going round to her with a gun and that she had 'seen him with a shotgun and cartridges'.

She said that an armed officer was sent to the house in Clark Way where she was at the time, and two further armed police units were sent from farther afield.

Ms Wilson said Collingwood, who admitted the offence of sending a false message to cause annoyance, admitted to the officer that she had 'made it up' as she 'wanted officers to come round for a chat'.

Ms Wilson said the other armed response officers were redeployed and Collingwood was arrested, telling police she had not realised armed officers would be called.

Ms Wilson said Collingwood had previous convictions for sending a false message and sending a grossly offensive message.

Matt Tye, mitigating, said there had not been a 'major disruption' of the police, as only one officer attended and she had immediately told him her message had been fake.

The magistrates heard it had been five years since her last conviction and that her mental health was poor.

It was said she had mentioned the firearm because she thought that would bring the police quicker and she had been told by the mental health team to ring the police first before them.

They heard that Collingwood, who is 32 weeks pregnant and until March had been in an abusive relationship, lived a 'chaotic lifestyle' and took crack cocaine and occasional heroin, but was already in contact with and receiving support from various agencies, so did not need any additional support from the Probation Service through a community penalty.

The magistrates told her they accepted she had not meant to do what she did, but that she was 'very close' to being given a custodial sentence and had to 'sort herself out'.

She was given a two year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £106 in costs and charges.