A Coquitlam teenager arrested last week in an alleged "swatting" incident involving false reports to a Florida police force could be facing more charges related to other allegations.
RCMP Sgt. Annie Linteau told The Tri-City News that after executing a search warrant at the 17-year-old boy's home last week, police believe he may be responsible for similar, unrelated crimes.
"They are continuing the investigation," she said. "They are investigating additional allegations involving the same youth and additional charges are expected."
Polk County (Fla.) sheriffs believe the teenager, who cannot be identified because he is a youth, phoned police in September and said he was going to "drive to Fort Meade high school in a black van and shoot everyone." At that time, a similar threat was made to Fort Meade city hall, sheriffs said in a statement.
In November, another incident occurred: Police received a report from a person who said they had killed their parents at a home in Winter Haven, Fla., and would shoot any officers who responded to the scene.
Police said swatting incidents are fake calls intended to get a SWAT (special weapons and tactics) team to respond to a home, school or place of business.
"Several law enforcement officers, including two canine units and the PCSO helicopter, immediately responded to the scene," the Polk County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. "When law enforcement officers arrived on scene, the juvenile witness located inside the home told the officers that the incident was a 'swat' hoax and the detectives already assigned to the Fort Meade 'swatting' investigation added this incident to their ongoing investigation."
Last Friday, the suspect was arrested at his Coquitlam home and charged with one count of extortion, three counts of mischief and one count of breach of recognizance. He is being held in custody until his next court appearance on Thursday, Dec. 18.
Linteau would not get into specifics about other crimes the suspect may be involved in but noted that this was not the first time he has been in trouble with police.
Mounties said the same youth pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal harassment in relation to an incident that occurred in North Vancouver in October 2013. He is also facing charges in an unrelated incident that occurred in Waterloo, Ont. in January of this year.
Swatting is a relatively new phenomenon, said Linteau, noting investigations are complex and can be dangerous because they tie up police resources that could be deployed to other emergencies.
"In these types of cases, it really impacts those communities' sense of safety and security," she said. "Significant police resources are deployed to whatever area is said to have a critical incident.
"These charges should be a message that the policing community takes false reports very seriously."
