Stevens Point police investigate phony 'swatting' text to 911, reporting murder that didn't happen
STEVENS POINT – Police are looking for a person who sent a phony "swatting" message to 911, causing officers from three agencies to swarm the home of an unsuspecting Stevens Point resident.
It was at least the second such false report this month in central Wisconsin.
At 3:13 p.m. Friday, a caller using talk to text reported he had just shot his girlfriend and was going to kill himself, according to the Stevens Point Police Department. Officers responded to the area and set up around the residence, according to police.
Officers tried to contact the man at the residence, but he did not answer, according to police. While officers were watching, two different pizza deliveries arrived at the address.
Police were able to talk to a resident, who was not aware of anything having to do with the message sent to 911, according to police. Officers determined the call was a case of "swatting," which is calling in a false report to bring many armed officers to a location.
When a call like this comes in, pretty much all departments in the area will respond, Stevens Point Police Lt. Joe Johnson said. Officers from the Portage County Sheriff's Office, Plover Police Department and University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Police Department, as well as members of the Stevens Point Fire Department, responded to the scene.
"It pretty much takes everybody else's needs and puts them on the back burner," Johnson said.
There is also a risk that someone gets hurt during a swatting incident, Johnson said. Someone who doesn't know what is going on may not realize that the actions of police are directed at him.
"It could go a million different ways," Johnson said.
In one notorious case, a California man was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2019 after calling to report a hoax hostage situation at a home in Wichita, Kansas. Police responded and shot the man who lived there when he came to the door and made a sudden move.
Officials take the swatting calls seriously, Johnson said. In Wisconsin, it is a felony to make a swatting call, punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 and a prison sentence of up to three years.
The details of the call seem to be similar to a swatting call that happened in Wausau earlier in June, Johnson said. It could be someone copying what the caller did previously or it could be the same person, he said. Police are continuing to investigate the calls.
MORE NEWS: Police investigate gunshots heard early Sunday in downtown Stevens Point
Contact Karen Madden at 715-345-2245 or kmadden@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @KMadden715, Instagram at @kmadden715 or Facebook at facebook.com/karen.madden.33.
This article originally appeared on Stevens Point Journal: Stevens Point police investigate phony swatting emergency call to 911
