11-Year-Old Charged in More Than 20 Swatting Calls Against Schools

An 11-year-old kid in Virginia has been charged in Florida with making more than 20 swatting calls in the Sunshine State, predominantly against schools, according to local police. And oddly, it’s still not clear whether the boy has any connections to Florida or why he allegedly chose victims in the state.

The swatting calls reportedly started on May 14 when the kid targeted Buddy Taylor Middle School in Palm Coast, Florida, according to a press release from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office. The kid made over 20 calls over the next week to Florida schools with children of all ages, including First Baptist Christian Academy, Flagler Palm Coast High School, Old Kings Elementary School, and Suncoast Community School.

Swatting is the attempt to get an overwhelming police response at a victim’s location by calling emergency services and insisting there’s a very violent or otherwise dangerous situation at a given location. For instance, it’s common to call and say that you’ve just killed some family members and are going to kill more, providing 911 with the location of the intended target.

In the case of this kid, he made threats about bombs placed in various locations, threatened to commit mass shootings, or stated that a teacher or students had been shot, according to local authorities.

The 11-year-old reportedly admitted to the swatting calls after the Homeland Security Section of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office was able to track down the caller’s identity. Authorities interviewed the kid, who apparently explained that he learned how to hide his identity online. It’s not immediately clear how police were able to find him, though they note a voice pattern analysis was used after the initial interview with him to compare the phone calls and his voice. The kid allegedly also admitted to making a threat to Maryland’s State House, aside from the numerous schools in Florida.

The kid was ultimately arrested in Virginia for 14 felony counts of false report concerning the planting of a bomb, 14 felony counts of unlawful use of a two-way communication device, one felony count of tampering with physical evidence, and 14 misdemeanor counts of disrupting a school function. He’s being held in a juvenile detention facility in Virginia and the State Attorney’s Office is reportedly working with authorities in Virginia on transferring him south.

“With school coming up in less than a month, I know that the status of this investigation was on the forefront of our community’s mind, which is why our detectives never stopped working to find the person responsible for terrorizing our students, parents, teachers, and our community,” Sheriff Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement published online. This kid’s behavior was escalating and becoming more dangerous.”

The name of the 11-year-old has been released but Gizmodo is opting not to share it. The decision to do a bunch of swatting calls was dumb and incredibly dangerous and hopefully, this kid eventually learns his lesson. But he’s still young and here’s hoping this doesn’t ruin his life in ways that he can never bounce back from, though he does face very serious charges.