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Manitoba RCMP arrest teen in connection with fake school shooting threats made to U.S. police

Manitoba police have arrested a man from Fisher River Cree Nation for allegedly calling in phony school shooting threats to U.S. authorities in two states.

18-year-old Fisher River man accused in 'swatting' incidents in North Carolina, Tennessee

CBC News ·
Parents of students from Volunteer High School in Church Hill, Tenn., gather outside the Armed Forces Reserve Center building in the neighbouring community of Mount Carmel, awaiting news of their children and take to them home after reports of an active at the school at around 8 a.m. on Aug. 10. A 911 caller claimed to be a gunman in the building, which authorities later said they believe was a hoax. (Larry N. Souders/The Associated Press)

Manitoba police have arrested a man from Fisher River Cree Nation for allegedly calling in phony school shooting threats to U.S. authorities in two states.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation contacted Manitoba RCMP on Aug. 17, asking them to help with an investigation, RCMP said in a news release Wednesday.

The U.S. authorities informed RCMP of incidents in Tennessee and in North Carolina involving what's commonly referred to as "swatting," which is when someone reports a fake life-threatening situation to provoke a police response.

Police in each state received 911 calls on separate dates from a man who claimed he was inside a school with a gun and planned to start shooting. The schools were placed on lockdown and each incident drew a large police presence that included SWAT teams, RCMP said.

Rhonda Lawson, centre, hugs her children, Donovan and Madison, as she describes to local media the moment she received a phone call about a possible active shooter at Volunteer High School in Church Hill, Tenn., on Tuesday, Aug. 10. Manitoba RCMP said in a news release Wednesday that U.S. authorities from two states, along with the Department of Homeland Security, tracked phony threats about school shootings in Tennessee and North Carolina back to a Manitoba address. (Larry N. Souders/The Associated Press)

Investigators later determined the calls were false and came from a Manitoba residence.

RCMP and the Winnipeg Police Service linked the calls back to an address in Fisher River Cree Nation, about 175 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

Police executed a search warrant on the home on Aug. 30, where they arrested an 18-year-old man and seized numerous electronic devices.

The teen was taken into custody and later released. He is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 7 on Peguis First Nation, which is between Winnipeg and Fisher River.

The investigation continues.

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