(Lockport, NY - NY State Police) -- State Police in Lockport, NY arrested Joseph W. Shepherd of Lockport, NY for Aggravated Harassment 2nd, and Falsely reporting and Incident 3rd.

The New York State Police Intelligence Center (NYSIC) in Albany, was contacted by Interpol Washington D.C. regarding the possible public suicide Via webcam Chat over the Internet.

Individuals that run a chat room website contacted the local authorities in England and stated that several members that were in the chat room observed Shepherd apparently commit suicide via webcam. Interpol London was in turn contacted by local law enforcement in Gwent England and advised them that a white male had committed suicide while broadcasting his webcam over the Internet.

The initial investigation by Interpol revealed that the IP address obtained from the chat room website belonged to an Internet service customer in the Lockport area. After an extensive search and investigation, the State Police in Lockport along with assistance from NYSIC in Albany were able to pinpoint an address and possible victim of the alleged suicide.

Troopers interviewed Shepherd who was found in good health and obviously not deceased nor injured in any way. Further investigation revealed that the entire suicide on camera was a hoax.

Shepherd was issued appearance tickets for the Town of Lockport Court and released. He is to answer the charges on August 25, 2009 at 7:00 pm.