(KTLA) – Have you ever accidentally sent a message to the wrong person with the same name? Maybe you meant to coordinate brunch with Mark E., but accidentally extended an invitation to Mark L.?
That’s essentially what happened to a caller who reportedly attempted to phone a bomb threat to the Hollywood Police — the one in California — but mistakenly called the Hollywood Police Department in Florida.
Broward County Sheriff’s Office dispatchers responded to the call on Sunday, after the suspect allegedly looked up the wrong phone number and called authorities in Hollywood, Florida.
The threat, according to law enforcement officials who spoke to TMZ, involved blowing up the Hollywood sign, located about 2,700 miles west of where the would-be criminal directed his phone call.
The caller asked for $10,000 to spare the iconic sign, reports TMZ.
KTLA spoke with Florida and California authorities, who said they were aware of the call. A report was eventually sent to the appropriate agency at the Los Angeles Police Department, and the call was determined to be a hoax and the threat non-existent.
It’s understandable how someone can confuse the two Hollywoods. Both are in close proximity to the ocean and in states that have both claimed the crown of the sun. But the big giveaway should have been the fact that Hollywood, California doesn’t have its own police department, while Hollywood, Florida does.
In the future, any Bond villain-in-training might want to take a moment to familiarize himself with some of America’s famous dupes: there are the two Portland (Oregon and Maine), Kansas Cities (Missouri and Kansas), Long Beaches (California and New Jersey) and major Disney properties in the United States (in Orange County, California and Orange County, Florida).
Or maybe you just avoid making criminal threats, whether you’re good or bad at geography.
