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Once again, police mobilized after getting the call late Sunday, Aug. 24 -- the same as they did on Easter Sunday.
And once again, the call to the home on Gates Place off Valley Road and Berdan Avenue near the Point View Reservoir was a hoax and all residents were safe.
An EMS unit remained on standby as a precaution.
The same thing happened at a nearby Berdan Avenue home a week earlier: Bogus Call Of Two Shot In Wayne Home Frightens Neighbors, Annoys Law Enforcement
Swatting incidents peaked nationwide about five or six years ago before subsiding somewhat. They’ve increased significantly over the past year or so.
Swatting exacts a toll on innocent residents, which is usually the intent. Often public figures and celebrities are the targets. Sometimes it's simply an effort to tie up law enforcement, authorities say.
Deploying SWAT teams and additional personnel to unsuspecting victims’ homes and businesses -- as well as to schools that end up being locked down -- can put people in danger, they note. It also diverts resources from potential areas of immediate need.
Many of the culprits call from out of state -- and sometimes even out of the country. They use programs that make it seem that the calls are coming from inside a particular house, school or other location.
ALSO SEE: A prank caller who told police his father had just shot his mother brought a SWAT unit to an otherwise quiet Dumont cul-de-sac in yet another in a growing list of swatting incidents. READ MORE....
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