Free Republic

A Los Angeles County teenager was sentenced to four years in prison Tuesday after admitting to making more than 375 "swatting calls" in which he made false reports of bomb and mass shooting threats at locations around the U.S. Alan W. Filion, an 18-year-old Lancaster resident, admitted in a plea agreement to carrying out calls targeting places such as high schools, colleges and universities, religious institutions and people such as government officials, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Federal prosecutors said he intended for the calls to result in major emergency responses by law enforcement. This led to some...

A California teenager accused of being behind a flurry of swatting incidents across the country targeting schools and the homes of FBI agents has been arrested in connection with a swatting attempt at a Florida mosque last year, according to court documents filed by state prosecutors. Alan Winston Filion, 17, was arrested last month at his home in Lancaster, California, and extradited to Florida on Tuesday, court documents say. He was charged as an adult on four felonies, including charges related to false reporting that triggered law enforcement response. Filion entered a not guilty plea to the charges. He is...