A Bronx resident has allegedly made thousands of false emergency calls to 911, sometimes exceeding 25 calls in a single day, and may soon face criminal charges, The Post reports.
Yuri Kharlamov, 54, reportedly used several phones to make 4,543 calls to 911 within the 46th Precinct in the Bronx from March 9, 2023, to July 18, according to case documents.
These calls involved false reports of severe crimes and emergencies, such as kidnappings, assaults, violent rapes, children being shot, and other life-threatening situations, as per NYPD documents.
Police sources state that many of these calls were racially charged.
Claims in these calls included scenarios like “a white man setting a black man on fire” on the subway, and “three large black men raping a woman,” police sources mentioned.
Kharlamov also allegedly informed 911 operators that the Proud Boys had placed “a bomb under a car” at the 46th Precinct stationhouse, that six Jewish males were assaulting one black male, and that five white males shot a 5-year-old child. On some days, he reportedly called over 30 times.
911 operators often noted that he used racial slurs or ranted during the calls, according to sources.
A police source expressed concern about the danger posed by the calls.
“He’s putting not only officers at risk, he’s putting civilians at risk,” said the source. “We’re activating lights and sirens on these calls.”
In a recent call, Kharlamov claimed white men were chasing people, according to police sources.
When officers found nothing at the scene, they called him, and he allegedly responded with racial slurs and demanded to speak to a supervisor, according to sources.
The calls originated from three different phone numbers, diverting thousands of police hours and significant public resources, delaying responses to genuine emergencies, the documents indicate.
His actions, referred to the Bronx District Attorney’s Office, are described as “a continuous and deliberate course of criminal conduct,” according to sources.
Kharlamov has 19 prior arrests, most of which are sealed, police sources said.
He was arrested on December 29, 2022, for throwing an egg at police officers at the 46th Precinct stationhouse in Fordham Heights, according to a criminal complaint.
Concurrently, he faced charges of making terroristic threats related to the alleged Proud Boys bomb threat, documents reveal.
The Bronx District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to inquiries about the outcome of that case.
In 2019, Kharlamov was arrested for allegedly squeezing a 55-year-old woman’s buttocks at 8th Avenue and 14th Street in Manhattan’s West Village, as per a criminal complaint.
He was arrested on May 22, 2019, in connection with this incident and charged with misdemeanor harassment and second-degree physical contact. He pleaded guilty to forcible touching and was required to complete a program, officials said.
Kharlamov may face charges of falsely reporting an incident, reckless endangerment, aggravated harassment, and disorderly conduct due to the calls, police sources stated.
“He gets put in a psych ward and they ask him if he’s thinking about hurting himself or anyone else,” an aggravated police source said. “He’ll answer ‘no’ to all those questions and he’s out in an hour. Mental illness shouldn’t be an excuse for committing crimes.”
Attempts to reach Kharlamov at two phone numbers were unsuccessful.
An NYPD spokeswoman said on Friday that the case is under investigation and that no arrest had been made yet.
