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Bremerton man arrested for alleged 'swatting' calls
No one was hurt, but U.S. Attorney Nick Brown said his calls put communities and law enforcement in danger.
BREMERTON, Wash. - A Bremerton man was arrested on Thursday for 10 federal felonies, all alleging he made fake emergency calls about hostages and bomb threats to law enforcement across the country and in Canada.
According to the indictment, between June 2022 and early September 2022, 20-year-old Ashton Connor Garcia made more than 20 swatting calls to law enforcement, targeting victims in California, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Washington, and Edmonton and Alberta in Canada.
The indictment said he gathered personal information about the victims and then threatened to harm them or send armed police to their home. Garcia demanded money, virtual currency, credit card information, or sexually explicit photos from some of the people he threatened, according to the indictment.
He also allegedly used voice-over technology to hide his identity while making those calls.
"Every time Mr. Garcia is alleged to have made one of his false reports to law enforcement, he triggered a potentially deadly event – sending heavily armed police officers to an address where they mistakenly believed they would confront someone who was armed and dangerous," said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. "Fortunately, no one was hurt, but the unpredictable and terrifying dynamic these calls created for Mr. Garcia’s alleged victims cannot be overstated. There is nothing funny about abusing emergency resources and intentionally placing people in harm’s way."
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The indictment further explains that Garcia allegedly made fake reports to non-emergency police numbers, claiming things such as that he and others had planted explosive devices in particular locations. He also allegedly falsely accused other individuals of committing crimes, such as murder, rape, and kidnapping, and he falsely claimed that these individuals possessed dangerous weapons, such as knives, firearms, and explosive devices.
He would often frequently claim that his father was holding him hostage or that his father stabbed his mother, according to the indictment.
The false reports tied up law enforcement resources that could have been used for actual emergencies. In some instances, law enforcement entered the victim's residence with weapons drawn and detained people at the residence, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The indictment charges Garcia with these crimes:
- Extortion – Ohio: On July 17, 2022, allegedly demanded credit card information or would injure the reputation of the victim, their family, would leak nude photos, and "swat them."
- Threats and Hoaxes -Ohio: On July 22, 2022, allegedly made a swatting call to the Shaker Heights Police Department falsely alleging his father was holding the family hostage with firearms and a hand grenade.
- Threats and Hoaxes – Ohio: On July 28, 2022, allegedly called the Cleveland Police Department falsely claiming he had planted a bomb at the Fox News station in Cleveland.
- Hoaxes regarding firearms – California: On July 29, 2022, allegedly called the Los Angeles Police Department falsely claiming his father was raping his sister, that his father had lots of guns and was both mentally ill and a drug addict.
- Interstate threats – Kentucky: on July 30, 2022, allegedly called the Kentucky State Police threatening to kill named hostages.
- Hoaxes regarding aircraft – California: on August 23, 2022, allegedly called the Los Angeles Police and claimed his daughter told him there was a bomb on her flight from Honolulu to LAX.
- Extortion – New jersey: on August 24, 2022, allegedly attempted to obtain photographs and videos of a minor female’s body by threatening to accuse a family member of a crime and "swat" them.
- Threats and hoaxes regarding explosives – Michigan: allegedly reported to the Milan Michigan Police Department that his father was holding him hostage with a gun and bomb.
- Threats and hoaxes – Tennessee: on September 2, 2022, allegedly called the Milan, Tennessee Police Department alleging he was being held hostage by his father who had a gun and bomb.
- Threats and hoaxes regarding explosives – California: allegedly called Los Angeles Police Department alleging he had stashed four pounds of C4 explosives at an airport in Los Angeles and would detonate it unless he was paid $200,000 in bitcoin.
Garcia allegedly told users on the internet platform Discord that he considered himself a "cyber-terrorist."
No one was hurt as a result of his calls, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in prison.