WOODLAND HILLS—At around 8:30 p.m. a swatting call led officers from the Los Angeles Police Department to surround a home located on the 8800 block of Oso Avenue near Saticoy Street and Roscoe Avenue on Tuesday, August 27.
Police responded to call regarding a man with a gun who barricaded himself inside a home. According to the initial report, there was a person at the scene who sustained gunshot wounds. An ambulance was also summoned to the home.
At approximately 9:00 p.m. after authorities arrived, they discovered the call was a prank. The family inside the residence was evacuated, as officers searched the two-story property. They determined the call was a “swatting” hoax.
The term “swatting” is a type of criminal harassment tactic used to deceive an emergency service dispatcher into sending emergency personnel to a location not required of services.
The family informed authorities that nobody from inside the home contacted police to report a shooting. After the shooting was deemed a hoax, the family was able to return to their home.
Authorities are currently investigating the hoax. One of the first swatting incidents that led to a death was caused by Tyler Rai Barriss, 25, a transient from the Los Angeles area. The victim was Andrew Thomas Finch, 28, of Wichita, Kansas. Barriss pleaded guilty to federal charges filed against him which included charges of false information and hoaxes and threatening to kill another or damage property by fire. He is now serving 20 years in federal prison.
