Scotts Valley man accused of making false report, pretending to be a veteran

Scotts Valley police officers arrested a 22-year-old man they say called in a fake report and pretended to be a military veteran.

Officers received a call on March 7 from a man who claimed he had been having a conversation with his neighbor in which he told the neighbor he was an Iraq War veteran and that he had several firearms for sale. The caller, who police have identified as Christopher Michael King, told police that at the end of the conversation, the neighbor pointed his own fully automatic rifle at him.

Officers obtained a search warrant for the neighbor’s home and found no such weapon. They determined King had lied to him about the assault.

Police arrested King Thursday afternoon on suspicion of falsely reporting an emergency and impersonating a military veteran. He was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail.