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62°
Monday, jun 22
Tag:
Swatting
Schools
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…
News
911 Call Was TikTok Live Dare, Paterson Man Admits: Cops
A 20-year-old man from Paterson, NJ, has been charged after Pennsylvania State Police say he made a fake 911 call in Monroe County that turned out to be a “swatting” incident. On Sunday, Sept. 7, at 9:41 p.m., troopers from the Stroudsburg barracks responded to a hang-up 911 call from Lees Run Circle in Price Township. A male caller claimed someone was dead and yelling could be heard in the background, police said. When officers arrived, they found no threat. All residents were safe and accounted for, authorities said. The next day, Sept. 8, investigators traced the call to a T-Mobile numb…
Schools
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…
Police & Fire
Update
: Swatting Call Claimed Murder, Hostage In Saddle Brook, All False, Chief Says
New details have been released in what police say was a swatting call that rocked a Saddle Brook family Thursday night, July 10. Officers were called to 222 Market St., around 11:04 p.m., after an unknown male claimed he had shot his mother and was holding his brother hostage, Saddle Brook Police Chief John A. Zotollo Jr. said. The caller also claimed he was armed with a rifle and would shoot any responding officers, the chief said. Saddle Brook officers and surrounding agencies quickly responded. But within 15 minutes, police made contact with the actual residents, who were unharmed and u…
News
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…
Police & Fire
Swatting Hoax Sends Cops Racing To Empty Paramus Home, Here's Who They Say Was Behind It
A 39-year-old man has been charged after authorities say he made a hoax call to police, falsely reporting a burglary in progress in Paramus and prompting a major emergency response. Joseph D. Monticello, 39, of East Hanover, was arrested after investigators determined he deliberately fabricated the report, Paramus Police Chief Robert Guidetti said. The incident unfolded on Friday, March 7, at approximately 11:40 a.m., when Paramus Police Communications received an anonymous 911 call claiming that three to four masked men were loading items into a white van outside a home. The caller abruptl…
Police & Fire
Bergen County Man Arrested In Florida Swattings, Sheriff Says
A 22-year-old Bergen County man was arrested last month after making swatting calls to police in Florida, authorities said. Maywood PD In August 2024, officers in south Florida responded to reports of shootings at two different residences, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said. One call said a person was shot in the chest and being held hostage, while another call said the caller, later identified as Justin Flavien, shot his sister, authorities said. Once on scene of both incidents, deputies determined the reports were unfounded and no one was injured, police said. Despite Flavien's effo…
Politics
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…
Police & Fire
'Welcome To Florida!' Sheriff Mocks NJ Swatting Caller Sentenced To Prison
A New Jersey man who made swatting calls to a Florida high school got more than his 15 minutes of fame: Two years behind bars. Brad Parga, of Guttenberg, who was 17 years old when he called in threats from the Garden State to Milton High School in Santa Rosa County on Feb. 14, 2022, said his reason for doing so was "to get on the news." On Nov. 14, 2024, Parga was sentenced to two years in the Florida Department of Corrections followed by three years of probation — and Santa Rosa County Sheriff Bob Johnson didn’t miss the opportunity to give the cheeky update. "You know I'm about gran…
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