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Swatting

Schools
Swatting Group ‘Purgatory’ Linked To 10+ Hoax Active Shooter Calls As FBI Charges Suspect Swatting Group ‘Purgatory’ Linked To 10+ Hoax Active Shooter Calls As FBI Charges Suspect
Swatting Group ‘Purgatory’ Linked To 10+ Hoax Active Shooter Calls As FBI Charges Suspect A swatting group calling itself Purgatory is believed to be behind more than 10 hoax active shooter reports that triggered lockdowns at universities nationwide — and now, federal prosecutors have filed charges against a suspect tied to the spree, officials announced Thursday, April 30. Villanova At The Center The wave of hoaxes began on Aug. 21 at Villanova University, where families and new students attending orientation Mass were sent scrambling after an alert warned of an “ACTIVE SHOOTER” on campus. Students and parents barricaded doors and hid as heavily armed officers flooded the Main L…

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by Jillian Pikora
Schools
Swatting Call Triggers Lockdown At Maryland High School: Police Swatting Call Triggers Lockdown At Maryland High School: Police
Swatting Call Triggers Lockdown At Maryland High School: Police A swatting call was to blame for a temporary high school lockdown in the area on Wednesday afternoon. Reports of a person carrying a firearm near Rockville High School proved to be unfounded on Wednesday, following a multi-agency investigation, though not before the building was locked down as a precaution. Officers from the Montgomery County and Rockville police departments, along with US Park Police, were called to the high school before 2 p.m. on Sept. 3 to investigate the call. @MCPS has placed Rockville High School on lockdown following the report of a person with a firearm near th…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
Second Hoax At Villanova University Sparks Police Response Ahead Of Classes Second Hoax At Villanova University Sparks Police Response Ahead Of Classes
Second Hoax At Villanova University Sparks Police Response Ahead Of Classes Villanova University faced a second false emergency report involving a weapon on campus Sunday, Aug. 24, one day before classes were scheduled to begin, Radnor Township Police confirmed. Officers were called to Austin Hall after a report of a possible threat, but police later confirmed the call was unfounded. Law enforcement searched the building, cleared the scene, and worked to restore normal operations. The investigation into the hoax is ongoing. The incident comes just three days after a fake active shooter report at Villanova’s law school sent the campus into chaos during orientation a…

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by Jillian Pikora
News
Virginia ‘Reaper’ Who Made Teen Girl Carve His Name Into Her Leg Learns Prison Fate Virginia ‘Reaper’ Who Made Teen Girl Carve His Name Into Her Leg Learns Prison Fate
Virginia ‘Reaper’ Who Made Teen Girl Carve His Name Into Her Leg Learns Prison Fate A 26-year-old Virginia man who was the leader in an online group that cyber stalked and terrorized young girls online will spend years in federal prison, authorities announced. Evan Strauss, of Moneta, who goes by the monikers "Reaper" and Kobe Deonsons" was sentenced on Thursday, Aug. 1 to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to stalking and child pornography offenses last year. The charges stem from a toxic relationship he formed online with a 17-year-old girl from Wyoming, whom he harassed and controlled for months.  The minor—identified in court documents only as Minor A—was t…

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by Zak Failla
News
Global Swatting Ringleader Who Targeted Congress, Churches, Media Pleads Guilty: DOJ Global Swatting Ringleader Who Targeted Congress, Churches, Media Pleads Guilty: DOJ
Global Swatting Ringleader Who Targeted Congress, Churches, Media Pleads Guilty: DOJ A Romanian man who led a global swatting ring that targeted members of Congress, churches, and even a former US president has pleaded guilty, federal officials announced. Thomasz Szabo, 26, known online as “Plank,” “Jonah,” and “Cypher,” entered his guilty plea in federal court this week, according to the US Department of Justice. Szabo was extradited from Romania in November 2024 and admitted to running a years-long online conspiracy that involved making fake bomb and mass-shooting threats across the United States, investigators said. He and his crew targeted more than 75 public officials…

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by Zak Failla
News
Washington County Teen Admits To Making Bomb, Shooting Hoax Calls Across US: DOJ Washington County Teen Admits To Making Bomb, Shooting Hoax Calls Across US: DOJ
Washington County Teen Admits To Making Bomb, Shooting Hoax Calls Across US: DOJ A 19-year-old from Maryland who helped run an online “Purgatory” group behind a wave of terrifying swatting calls—targeting schools, airports, casinos, and homes—has pleaded guilty in federal court, authorities announced. Owen Jarboe, of Hagerstown, admitted to conspiracy, cyberstalking, and making interstate threats involving fire and explosives between December 2023 and Jan. 18, 2024, according to the US Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said that Jarboe and his co-conspirators used Telegram, Instagram, and shared spoofing scripts to mask their identities while triggering police responses to…

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by Zak Failla
Politics
Bomb Threats, Swatting Incidents Target Trump Cabinet Picks, Appointees, Spokesperson Says Bomb Threats, Swatting Incidents Target Trump Cabinet Picks, Appointees, Spokesperson Says
Bomb Threats, Swatting Incidents Target Trump Cabinet Picks, Appointees, Spokesperson Says Several of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet selections and administrative appointees were the targets threats the last two days, a spokesperson said, calling the acts "violent" and "un-American." According to a statement by the Trump-Vance Transition Team on Wednesday, Nov. 27, several individuals associated with the incoming administration were subjected to threats ranging from bomb scares to "swatting" incidents, in which false reports are made to dispatch emergency responders to someone's location. Law enforcement responded swiftly to ensure the safety of those targeted, the team s…

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by Joe Lombardi