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Tampa man seeking sex calls 911, police say

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By HOWARD ALTMAN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 12, 2009

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• Hear excerpt of call (edited)

Joshua Basso

TAMPA - Joshua Basso, 29, was looking for sex Wednesday morning and out of minutes on his cell phone, according to Tampa police.

So he called the only number that worked: 911.

"Basso states that he was going to do his laundry today but was informed that the washer was inoperable," Tampa police officer Vivian Frauenfeld wrote in an incident report. "Basso decided to make some breakfast, then went into the shower to have some fun."

That fun, Frauenfeld wrote, included calling a 911 operator, making several sexual comments about her body before asking if he could come over to her house and have sex with her.

After being arrested, Basso said he "did not think he would get into trouble for calling 911," Frauenfeld wrote. Basso admitted he has made obscene calls to 911 in the past, but he has never been caught because he uses a false name and address when calling."

Police responded to Basso's residence, at 4204 N. Nebraska Ave., shortly before 10 a.m. Wednesday after complaints by the 911 operator, according to the report. When they arrived at the rooming house, police found two men who led them to a bathroom where Basso was. The door was locked, police said.

According to the report:

The man inside yelled out that his name was "Bill." After acknowledging his identity, Basso walked out of the bathroom.

Police asked where his phone was.

"How did you know I had a cell phone?" Basso asked in shock.

He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a black LG cell phone. He showed it to police and tried to blame the call on someone else in the rooming house.

Police called his cell phone. Basso cut the call off.

Police redialed. Basso powered the phone down as they watched.

Police then asked Basso to hand over the phone to them. They turned it on, called the phone and it rang.

"I did it," Basso yelled. "I did it."

After being read his rights, Basso told police about wanting sex and being out of minutes on his cell phone.

Basso was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of making a false 911 call, according to Hillsborough County jail records. He remains in jail with bail set at $500.

Editor Howard Altman can be reached at (813) 259-7629.

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