An 11-year-old boy from Virginia has been charged with making more than 20 swatting calls in Florida, mostly against schools, according to local police. Curiously, it remains unclear whether the boy has any ties to Florida or why he chose to target victims there.
According to a press release from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, the swatting calls began on May 14, with the boy targeting Buddy Taylor Middle School in Palm Coast, Florida. Over the next week, the boy made more than 20 calls to Florida schools of all ages, including First Baptist Christian Academy, Flagler Palm Coast High School, Old Kings Elementary School and Suncoast Community Schools.
Swatting is an attempt to obtain an overwhelming police response in a victim’s location by calling emergency services and claiming to be in an extremely violent or dangerous situation in a particular location. For example, a typical call would say that they have just killed several family members and are planning to kill more, and then tell 911 the location of the target.
According to local authorities, the boy made threats about bombs in various locations, threatened to carry out mass shootings and said teachers and students had been shot.
According to reports, the 11-year-old boy admitted to making the swatting calls after the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office Homeland Security Division identified the caller. Authorities interviewed the boy, who reportedly explained he learned how to hide his identity online. It was not immediately clear how police were able to locate the boy, but police noted that after an initial interview with the boy, voice pattern analysis was used to compare the content of the calls to the boy’s voice. The boy reportedly admitted to making threats against the Maryland State Capitol, as well as numerous schools in Florida.
The boy was ultimately arrested in Virginia on 14 felony counts of falsely reporting a bomb, 14 felony counts of illegal use of a two-way communication device, one felony count of tampering with physical evidence, and 14 misdemeanor counts of disrupting a school event. The boy is being held in a Virginia juvenile detention center, and the state attorney’s office is reportedly working with Virginia authorities to move him south.
“With the school year less than a month away, we know the status of this investigation was of concern to our community, which is why our detectives will stop at nothing to find the perpetrator who terrorized students, parents, teachers and our community,” Sheriff Rick Staley said in a statement released online. “This boy’s behavior escalated and became more dangerous.”
The 11-year-old boy’s name has been released, but Gizmodo is choosing not to publish it. The decision to make a swatting call was foolish and extremely dangerous, and we hope that this boy ultimately learns his lesson. However, he is still young, and we hope that this doesn’t ruin his life beyond repair. However, he faces very serious charges.