FCC Proposes Massive Fine for Jamming NYC Police

Speaking of enforcement, the FCC has proposed fining a 20-year-old New York City man more than $400,000 for repeatedly making unauthorized transmissions and false alarm calls on city police frequencies. The ARRL Letter reports that the Commission issued a Notice of Apparent Liability (NAL) to Jay Peralta of Queens, New York, alleging that over the course of a year, he transmitted false bomb threats, false distress calls supposedly from NYPD officers, false claims of crimes involving firearms and threats against specific police officers. 

The proposed fine was announced personally by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, saying the action shows the FCC "will not tolerate unauthorized and illegal use of the radio spectrum." Peralta and two other men had been arrested last fall in connection with several robberies, although it is unclear if those cases are connected with the radio interference case.