Rihanna was swatted on Thursday, just one day after music and fashion mogul Sean “P. Diddy” Combs was the victim of a similar swatting prank.
A call was placed to police in which it was claimed that two armed men broke into Rihanna’s Pacific Palisades. The caller told a dispatcher that someone inside the home was shot during the break-in.
After arriving on the scene, the LAPD immediately determined that the call was another swatting prank.
Yesterday’s swatting call was placed in nearby San Fernando Valley. During Thursday’s raid, first reports suggested that actor Steve Carell was the victim of the swatting prank. It was later determined that Carell’s driveway was used simply to secure the area.
Several reports are suggesting that this newest round of swatting is being conducted by the same hackers who recently targeted celebrities. Those hackers went after Kim Kardashian, Tom Cruise, Britney Spears, Beyonce, and even Michelle Obama.
The act of swatting can have dire consequences. Police warn that because of the heightened sense of urgency, a police raid can cause injuries and in extreme cases even death.
With the swatting calls taking away valuable resources from the LAPD, the agency has warned that it will prosecute any caught swatters to the full extent of the law.
In December 2012, a teenager in California was arrested after police raided his family home. Under the right circumstances, a swatting prank can lead to felony charges. The unnamed teenager is believed to be behind swatting pranks against both actor Ashton Kutcher and pop superstar Justin Bieber.
Do you think the Rihanna swatting prank and others are crossing a line that shouldn’t be crossed?
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