Montville — State police say a Norwich man concocted a story about an armed robbery in an attempt to cover up his gambling losses at Mohegan Sun casino.

Andrew W. Safranski, 24, of 187 Maple St. called 911 on Thursday to report he had been robbed in the casino parking lot, police said. State police in Montville responded, investigated and determined Safranski was lying.

Safranski later admitted he made up the robbery story because he was concerned his family would be upset about his losses, police said.

He was charged with second-degree making a false statement and second-degree falsely reporting an incident.

Held in lieu of a $2,500 bond, Safranski was slated to appear Friday in Norwich Superior Court.