HAYWARD, Calif. -- Authorities have arrested an alleged 911 cell phone caller who was believed to have made more than 27,000 emergency calls, overwhelming California Highway Patrol and Hayward 911 systems.

The 911 calls started flooding in last May. The caller responded to emergency operators with bodily noises, muttering and pressing beep tones.

"He completely overwhelmed our system," said Desi Calzada, manager of the Hayward Communications Center, which operates 911. "He delayed the answering of other 911 calls because we were answering his."

John Triplette was arrested Wednesday for abusing the 911 emergency line, a misdemeanor.

The CHP communication center in Vallejo started getting bogus 911 calls last May, then the Hayward center began getting the calls in January.

But before he was arrested, Triplette allegedly managed to call in another 10,000 calls to the police, as well as 4,000 to the Solano County Sheriff's Department, according to Lt. Chris Orrey, a spokeswoman for the Hayward Police Department.

When the investigators finally tracked Triplette down at his home in the 24000 block of Amador Street, he told arresting officers he was sorry.

When asked why he made the calls, he replied: "Because it's free."