A prankster dialled 999 and told police that there was a gorilla on the loose in Coalville's Belvoir Shopping Centre - and asked for 'armed police' to come to the area.

Leicestershire Police this week released a transcript of the call, from a young person claiming to be called 'Nathaniel Bartholemew'.

The caller was asked by a clearly frustrated phone operator to give more details of the 'incident' as well as his phone number and home address.

At that point the caller said they were 'on cocaine'.

And when the operator said the prank was taking up space that someone with a real emergency could be using, the caller can be heard saying: 'Sorry'.

Leicestershire Police released audio of the call to highlight the problem of hoax 999 calls.

The force posted on social media and said: "We recently received a prank call reporting a gorilla in Coalville.

"Whilst it might seem funny to some, it's crucial to remember that these calls can prevent real emergencies from being addressed promptly.

"Let's use this as a reminder to only call our 999-emergency line when it's absolutely necessary. Every second counts in an emergency!"

On the audio, the caller, described as a 'bored teenager', says: "There's a gorilla, yeah, raping a monkey in the precinct in Coalville."

When asked for personal details, he responds with: "I ain't got a phone, I'm ringing off one of those machine thingies."

He adds then says: "I've forgotten where I live because I'm on loads of cocaine

"Can you send armed police to the precinct please?".

But the call-handler brings a swift end to the prank adding: "It's not a good joke, just so you know.

"It's not funny at all. You're ringing 999, so this is taking up a slot of somebody that actually needs help."