After months of investigation, the FBI has arrested one of the most prolific swatters in American history. The 17-year-old Californian suspect, who goes by the alias Torswats, is being held in detention as he awaits extradition to Seminole County, Florida.
The teenager faces four felony charges, including terrorism and prejudice-motivated acts, according to Wired. Florida law prosecutes minors as adults; therefore, their identity is concealed. This swatting suspect arrest follows a surge in swatting incidents across the nation, with Seminole County experiencing high-profile attacks targeting a mosque and a courthouse.
A crest of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is seen 03 August 2007 inside the J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building in Washington, DC.
Torswats claimed culpability for hundreds of fraudulent bomb threats and active shootings phoned into US schools, politicians' residences, courthouses, and religious organizations. The charges against the California teen encompass false reporting of bomb threats or firearms use, instigating law enforcement actions, and exhibiting bias-based prejudices.
How Dangerous is Swatting?
Swatting has witnessed a rise in activity, targeting schools and universities. Recent incidents include an accidental discharge of a service weapon in Danvers, Massachusetts, and a police vehicle ramming into a school building in Saginaw Township, Michigan.
Swatting is a perilous criminal deception involving a fabricated report to police, aiming to draw them to a location under false pretenses of severe crimes. According to CNN, swatting, which the FBI has been keeping an eye on for almost two decades, has developed beyond its initial motivations of "bragging rights and ego" to include personal grievances, disrupting operations, diverting law enforcement resources, and financial gain. Notably, high-profile celebrities such as Ashton Kutcher, Justin Bieber, and Kim Kardashian have fallen victim to this hoax.
Since the Christmas holiday, swatters have targeted the residences of notable politicians from both political parties, judges overseeing cases related to former US President Donald Trump, and the director of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
The internet's inherent anonymity has impeded law enforcement efforts to locate individuals, causing panic and fear. Swatters employ sophisticated techniques, including Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services, virtual private networks (VPNs), and multiple Internet routers, to conceal their identities. Some swatters have even utilized artificial intelligence to modify the caller's voice.
US Government Takes Action
Several states have responded to swatting incidents by increasing penalties, as per a report from Time. In 2023, Ohio classified making a false emergency call leading to law enforcement action as a felony. Virginia also raised penalties for swatting calls, introducing the possibility of up to 12 months in jail.
At the national level, Congress has not addressed a bill to enhance penalties for swatting incidents. Following a recent swatting incident targeting her on December 25, Taylor Green expressed her intent on X to introduce a House bill streamlining the arrest and prosecution of individuals responsible for swatting calls.
In the past year, the FBI, in collaboration with state and local authorities, introduced a "Virtual Command Center" aimed at enhancing the sharing of information on swatting incidents among police and intelligence fusion centers. This initiative enables a nationwide overview of the threat, aiding in the identification of patterns and potential repeat offenders.
Launched in May, the program has already received reports of over 500 swatting incidents, marking a concerted effort to address and mitigate the risks associated with these deceptive actions.
