A woman from Arlesey has been fined for wasting police time after falsely claiming she was being held hostage in her home.

The 40-year-old reported to a family member that she was being held against her will, leading to police being called and armed officers being deployed to the scene to protect the public and detain the offenders.

After discovering there was no such threat, the woman was arrested and has been subsequently fined £90 and given a penalty notice for disorder.

Wayne Humberstone, who is head of the force control room, said: “This action shows that we do not take hoax calls lightly and anyone who wastes police time will be dealt with robustly.

“There is no excuse for unnecessarily calling officers out, as it wastes valuable resources and could divert service away from someone else genuinely in need.

“Our 999 service is a vital lifeline for the public in an emergency. Anyone who wishes to contact us to report crime or speak to us in a non-emergency situation should call us on 101.”