The FBI has linked a Canadian teenager to a series of “swatting” calls and threats in the U.S., possibly including the threats that led to the evacuations of both Northwood and Northwest high schools on the morning of April 29, and another at Northwest that forced students to shelter in place on the morning of May 5.
Montgomery County Police Capt. Paul Starks said local police are working with the FBI on the cases in Montgomery and that the investigation of the threats at Northwest and Northwood is ongoing.
The 16-year-old boy from Ottawa also is a suspect in threats received by schools in states around the country, including California, Florida, Connecticut and New York, according to the FBI.
Ottawa police charged the teen with 60 criminal offenses on Friday and seized firearms and communication devices from his home.
According to the FBI, swatting is a term used by police to describe a threat made by someone who knowingly provides false information to authorities that suggests an attack may take place at a specific location so that police send tactical units to the site.
All three threats in Montgomery County were called in to the schools, according to police. The first came into Northwood at 9:29 a.m. on April 29; the second to Northwest at 9:32 a.m. that day. Both schools were evacuated while police searched the buildings, leaving students outside in cold, rainy weather. The May 5 threat at Northwest was called in at 10:30 a.m.
Starks said the calls on April 29 involved threats of violence, explosives and firearms. He said he didn’t know the specifics of the May 5 call.
The FBI reported that in some cases linked to the teen police were falsely warned of explosives, hostage-taking and the threat of an active shooter.
Northwest High School is located in Germantown; Northwood High is in Silver Spring.
