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By TYLER RALEY | Staff Writer

HOOVER – The Hoover Police Department has arrested Larry Scott Brown, 54, for allegedly false reporting under law.

While an officer was patrolling Tattersall Boulevard and watching a vehicle believed to be involved in a nearby retail theft, the HPD received a call at 8:16 p.m. of a robbery in progress at a nearby Walmart on Monday, Jan. 16.

The 911 caller reported a male pointing a gun at a female subject, and after several police officers performed an emergency response, including the one on patrol, no evidence was found of a robbery, domestic violence incident or any related crime, as well as no other calls being sent in. The patrolling officer resumed his duties, but the suspected vehicle was gone.

Afterwards, an investigation was carried out which determined that Brown was the owner of the vehicle in question and that he was not physically at the Walmart when he made the call. Authorities believe that the call was used as a ploy to divert the officer’s attention from the vehicle so that he could get away from the area without being questioned.

The facts of the investigation were presented to the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office, and a warrant was issued for Brown’s arrest on charges of false reporting to law enforcement, a Class C felony with a $5,000 bond.

Brown was booked into the Hoover City Jail before being transferred to the Shelby County Jail on Feb. 1. He was released on Feb. 3 after posting bond.

The penalty of making a false report to law enforcement came into effect on Oct. 1, 2024, making any false report alleging imminent danger to a person or the public a Class C felony. It was brought on as a result of the Carlee Russell kidnapping hoax, which persuaded the Alabama Legislature to help craft legislation to amplify the penalty.