(NewsNation) — A swatting call that sent armed police to the home of the judge overseeing former President Donald Trump’s fraud trial is the latest in a series of similar incidents, which can be a challenge to investigate.
The U.S. Capitol Police told NewsNation last month they were working to investigate a growing trend of swatting incidents involving public officials.
Swatting involves a hoax call or fake threat, reported to emergency services, according to the FBI. The calls often mention alleged hostages threatened with execution or supposed bombs ready to detonate, leading to a massive police response.
The cases aren’t impossible to solve, and existing laws attempt to crack down on the act.
Last year, federal authorities charged a 20-year-old Washington man for allegedly making more than 20 swatting calls in 11 different states and a Canadian province from June to September 2022. In those calls, he allegedly threatened victims with harm and demanded money or sexually explicit photos of the people he threatened, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Depending on the circumstances, swatters can be charged on a federal or state level with calling in false information or hoaxes, stalking, making threats over the internet and wire fraud, according to the self-help legal site Nolo.
Modern technology and the anonymous nature of swatting incidents, however, can complicate investigations. Callers can mask their voices and outsmart caller ID, making it hard for investigators to pinpoint the location of the call or the person on the other line.
Internet protocol (IP) addresses can be useful for tracing online offenses back to the perpetrator, but it’s not a perfect tool. IP addresses aren’t physical locations and can be linked to broad geographic areas or incorrect addresses, according to the tech industry outlet Lifewire.
In other cases, calls are computer-generated and rely on artificial intelligence, further complicating investigations.
“It’s critical to recognize that these are not victimless crimes or innocent pranks: They can have real — and even deadly — consequences,” nonprofit Secure Community Network CEO Michael Masters said in a statement last month.
The act is often criticized as a drain of resources that in some cases, turns violent.
Harvard campus police officers held at least four students at gunpoint in April after receiving a false report of an armed person in the campus dorms, the school’s student newspaper reported.
In 2021, a 60-year-old Tennessee man died of a heart attack after police raided his house because of a swatting incident.
Last summer, the FBI established a national database to track swatting.
The National Swatting Virtual Command Center was created in May and is available to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement.
Still, the FBI doesn’t track swatting in its national crime statistics.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has urged lawmakers to take action against swatting and online harassment.
Some states and individual agencies have already taken steps to minimize swatting. In 2022, Maryland created a task force to research swatting and follow up with legislative recommendations, according to the ADL.
The Seattle Police Department uses a system that 911 operators to dispatch emergency vehicles while also checking a database to see if there has been a history of swatting calls to the location.
Wichita, Kansas, police adopted a similar system several years ago after police shot and killed a swatting victim on the front porch of his home, local news outlets reported.