Chilling trend of ‘swatting’ where sick pranksters spark armed police raids with hoax calls – and left innocent man dead
SWATTING has become a twisted online trend where sick pranksters spark chaos with hoax calls to the cops.
High profile celebrities and influencers have been targeted by so-called “swatters” – but for one innocent dad, a single phone call cost him his life.
Swatting is when a hoax phone call is made to the police with a fake crime report – usually related to bomb threats, hostage situations or murder.
The caller gives an address of a home – and it often leads to armed officers and SWAT teams turning up ready to shoot.
Some hoax calls have resulted in people’s homes being raided – and innocent people held at gunpoint by police.
For 28-year-old Andrew Finch, a swatting call led to his death after he was shot by cops who surrounded his house.
Andrew M Stroth, managing director at Action Injury Law Group, worked with Mr Finch’s family when they filed a $25million lawsuit against the cops involved in his death.
He described swatting as “another form of a prank call” – but he is concerned over the rising number of cases in recent years.
He told The Sun: “I think swatting has become a trend and people are doing it more and more but the phenomenon called swatting to me is another form of a prank call.
“Now with social media there are ways to shut down a university campus or have police show up to an innocent person’s home and unfortunately I see it increasing across the country.”
Stroth – who has seen first hand the devastating consequences of a swat call – says people use them to “bully or harass” others or just as a “funny joke”.
Mr Stroth has worked on several high profile civil action cases that focus on police shootings across the US.
But he has always regarded Finch’s case one of the most shocking.
Mr Finch’s house was swatted by cops after a hoax phone call.
“Andrew Finch heard noise outside his home, he opened the door and within moments he was shot and killed by a sharpshooter with the Wichita Police Department,” Mr Stroth said.
“His kids lost their father, his girlfriend lost their boyfriend, his mum lost a son, his siblings lost a brother, I mean it was a tragedy.
“How in America can you open the door to your home and be instantly shot and killed.”
The Andrew Finch case
ANDREW Finch was shot dead by the Wichita Police Department on December 28, 2017.
Police were alerted of a suspected hostage situation at Finch’s house as well as claims he had murdered his father and covered the house in flammable gasoline.
All competently false statements made by a serial swatter called Tyler Barriss.
Barriss had been approached by a pal, Casey Viner, to make the swatting call after he had lost a game of Call of Duty: WWII to Shane Gaskill.
Gaskill told Viner an address who then gave that information to Barriss who subsequently phoned the Wichita cops and told them the horrific claims.
The address belonged to Andrew Finch and his family – including young children.
When the armed cops arrived on Finch’s doorstep they ordered him to leave the property.
He opened the door unarmed and court documents showed he made no threatening gestures to alert police.
But he was killed just 10 seconds afterwards.
Officials said the officer who fired the fatal bullet feared Finch was reaching for a gun, according to KSNW.
Barriss later agreed to serve 20 to 25 years in jail as part of a plea agreement for not only his role in Finch’s death but also for 50 other charges related to swatting calls.
Viner was sentenced to 16 months in prison and two years of supervised release as Gaskill faced 18 months behind bars.
Finch’s heartbroken family looked to get $25million from the city in compensation for his death.
Officer Rapp, who fired the fatal bullet, continued in his role at the Wichita Police Department.
The Finch family and Mr Stroth have always maintained the view that Rapp should be held “criminally responsible for the tragic death of Andrew Finch”.
Mr Stroth feels more needs to be done within police departments to stop swatting calls resulting in fatalities.
Think if it was your brother, your sister, your father, your mother who was killed or injured by the result of a swatting call
Andrew M Stroth
“Police departments need to be trained and obviously there needs to be more education around these types of calls so that the authorities know how to respond appropriately,” he said.
“Swatters need to be held responsible and I think there needs to be training in police departments across the country with respect to what do you do when a call comes.”
The shocking death of Mr Finch sparked outrage across the US.
Mr Stroth said: “Think if it was your brother, your sister, your father, your mother who was killed or injured by the result of a swatting call.
“I think people need to think about the consequences of their actions because what happened to Andrew Finch changed his life forever on that day.
“It’s unconstitutional, it’s illegal, it’s wrong and it’s impacting people’s lives.”
In recent years, swatting calls have plagued the lives of several high-profile internet celebrities, including YouTube stars and streamers.
They often have their addresses leaked online by fans who manage to find out where they live.
Several people have even be swatted while they were live-streaming.
It’s unconstitutional, it’s illegal, it’s wrong and it’s impacting people’s lives
Andrew M Stroth
Police raid their homes and do a thorough search of the property completely ruining their job and causing hours of commotion and panic.
For Mr Stroth, swatters are often younger people who believe what they are doing is just a harmless joke.
He said: “It is immature and they think it’s funny and a joke.
“There is access to more information, there’s more people online, all sorts of gaming and influencers and it’s fairly easy to go on google and get personal information.”
Referring to the people involved the Finch case, he said: “I don’t think those people that day woke up that morning and said we’re going to go kill somebody or get someone killed.
“It was a joke and one that went sideways.”
High-profile swatting victims
Miley Cyrus
Police received an urgent phone call from someone claiming the singer’s home was being invaded by armed thugs.
Worried cops sent over helicopters and a high number of officers with heavy armour and weaponry to her home only to discover that no one was even in the house.
Tom Cruise
The Top Gun star was a swatting victim in 2013 when Beverly Hills cops stormed up to his mansion after being told there was an “armed robbery in progress” at his address.
Cops searched the property and found no one had been inside and nothing was missing.
Justin Bieber and Ashton Kutcher
In December 2012, a 12-year-old was arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department for making prank calls to the homes of the two celebrities.
They made reports of violence at both properties and said there was an active shooter inside the homes.
IShowSpeed
Popular YouTuber and streamer IShowSpeed was handcuffed by police officers after they entered his home after getting a call as he was live streaming to millions.
Speed can be heard saying to cops: “I didn’t know, bro. Oh my god, bro. I swear I didn’t do anything. I didn’t do s***.”
Other streamers such as Adin Ross and Kalani have also been swatted and caught on camera.
Presidential candidate Nikki Haley
A man called the cops on potential US presidential candidate Nikki Haley saying he had shot a woman at her property.
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows
The day after Bellows took away Donald Trump’s ability to run for president last year, her home was surrounded by police.
The swatter claimed someone was burgling her home.
Republican Senator Rick Scott
On December 27, Rick Scott’s home was bombarded with cops after a swatter said they shot a woman inside of Scott’s house.
Fake shootings were also phoned into police across states in late December to the homes of Republicans Marjorie Taylor Greene and Brandon Williams as well as Boston Mayor Michelle Wu.
They have been targeting both allies and rivals of former president Donald Trump as he aims to return to the White House.
