Office of Public Affairs California Teenager Sentenced to 48 Months in Prison for Nationwide Swatting Spree United States Department of Justice
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ppArchived NewsppPara Notícias en EspañolppAlan W Filion 18 of Lancaster California was sentenced today to 48 months in prison for making interstate threats to injure the person of anotherppAccording to the plea agreement from approximately August 2022 to January 2024 Filion made over 375 swatting and threat calls including calls in which he claimed to have planted bombs in the targeted locations or threatened to detonate bombs andor conduct mass shootings at those locations Filion targeted religious institutions high schools colleges and universities government officials and numerous individuals across the United StatesppFilion intended his calls to cause largescale deployment of police and emergency services units to the targeted locations During these calls he provided information to law enforcement and emergency services agencies that he knew to be false such as false names false claims that he and others had placed explosives in particular locations false claims that he and others possessed dangerous weapons including firearms and explosives and false claims that he and other individuals had committed or intended to imminently commit violent crimesppIn some instances armed law enforcement officers approached and entered a targeted residence with their weapons drawn and detained individuals that occupied the residence Indeed Filion claimed in a post on Jan 20 2023 that when he swats someone he usually gets the cops to drag the victim and their families out of the house cuff them and search the house for dead bodies Additionally Filions calls caused law enforcement officers and dispatchers to respond and to be unavailable in response to other emergenciesppFilion became a serial swatter for both profit and recreation He claimed in a Jan 19 2023 online post that his first swatting was like 2 to 3 years ago and that 69 months ago he decided to turn it into a business On several occasions Filion placed posts on social media channels advertising his services and swattingforafee structureppOn Jan18 2024 Filion was arrested in California on Florida state charges arising from a May 2023 threat he made to a religious institution in Sanford Florida In that threat he claimed to have an illegally modified AR15 a Glock 17 pistol pipe bombs and Molotov cocktails He said that he was going to imminently commit a mass shooting and kill everyone he saw He pleaded guilty in federal court to making that threatppFilion also pleaded guilty to making three other threatening calls an October 2022 call to a public high school in the Western District of Washington in which he threatened to commit a mass shooting and claimed to have planted bombs throughout the school a May 2023 call to a Historically Black College or University in the Northern District of Florida in which he claimed to have placed bombs in the walls and ceilings of campus housing that would detonate in about an hour and a July 2023 call to a local police department dispatch number in the Western District of Texas in which he falsely identified himself as a senior federal law enforcement officer provided the federal lawenforcement officers residential address to the dispatcher claimed to have killed the federal officers mother and threatened to kill any responding police officersppThe FBI and US Secret Service investigated the case with valuable assistance provided by the Seminole County Florida Sheriffs Office the Anacortes Washington Police Department the Florida Department of Law Enforcement the California Department of Justice the Los Angeles County California Sheriffs Office and the Volusia County Florida Sheriffs OfficeppAssistant US Attorney Kara Wick for the Middle District of Florida prosecuted the case with valuable assistance from the National Security Divisions Counterterrorism Section the State Attorneys Office for Seminole County Florida 18th Judicial Circuit and the US Attorneys Offices for the Western District of Washington Northern District of Florida Western District of Texas and District of Columbia ppA former Iraqi refugee and legal permanent resident of Richmond Texas has entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organizationppMichael Charles Schena 42 of Alexandria Virginia was arrested on criminal charges related to his alleged participation in a criminal conspiracy to gather transmit or lose national defense information ppJian Zhao and Li Tian activeduty US Army soldiers stationed at Joint Base LewisMcChord along with Ruoyu Duan a former US Army soldier were arrested today following indictments by federalppOffice of Public AffairsUS Department of Justice950 Pennsylvania Avenue NWWashington DC 20530ppOffice of Public Affairs Direct Line2025142007ppDepartment of Justice Main Switchboard2025142000ppSignup for Email UpdatesSocial MediappppHave a question about Government Servicesp
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ppArchived NewsppPara Notícias en EspañolppAlan W Filion 18 of Lancaster California was sentenced today to 48 months in prison for making interstate threats to injure the person of anotherppAccording to the plea agreement from approximately August 2022 to January 2024 Filion made over 375 swatting and threat calls including calls in which he claimed to have planted bombs in the targeted locations or threatened to detonate bombs andor conduct mass shootings at those locations Filion targeted religious institutions high schools colleges and universities government officials and numerous individuals across the United StatesppFilion intended his calls to cause largescale deployment of police and emergency services units to the targeted locations During these calls he provided information to law enforcement and emergency services agencies that he knew to be false such as false names false claims that he and others had placed explosives in particular locations false claims that he and others possessed dangerous weapons including firearms and explosives and false claims that he and other individuals had committed or intended to imminently commit violent crimesppIn some instances armed law enforcement officers approached and entered a targeted residence with their weapons drawn and detained individuals that occupied the residence Indeed Filion claimed in a post on Jan 20 2023 that when he swats someone he usually gets the cops to drag the victim and their families out of the house cuff them and search the house for dead bodies Additionally Filions calls caused law enforcement officers and dispatchers to respond and to be unavailable in response to other emergenciesppFilion became a serial swatter for both profit and recreation He claimed in a Jan 19 2023 online post that his first swatting was like 2 to 3 years ago and that 69 months ago he decided to turn it into a business On several occasions Filion placed posts on social media channels advertising his services and swattingforafee structureppOn Jan18 2024 Filion was arrested in California on Florida state charges arising from a May 2023 threat he made to a religious institution in Sanford Florida In that threat he claimed to have an illegally modified AR15 a Glock 17 pistol pipe bombs and Molotov cocktails He said that he was going to imminently commit a mass shooting and kill everyone he saw He pleaded guilty in federal court to making that threatppFilion also pleaded guilty to making three other threatening calls an October 2022 call to a public high school in the Western District of Washington in which he threatened to commit a mass shooting and claimed to have planted bombs throughout the school a May 2023 call to a Historically Black College or University in the Northern District of Florida in which he claimed to have placed bombs in the walls and ceilings of campus housing that would detonate in about an hour and a July 2023 call to a local police department dispatch number in the Western District of Texas in which he falsely identified himself as a senior federal law enforcement officer provided the federal lawenforcement officers residential address to the dispatcher claimed to have killed the federal officers mother and threatened to kill any responding police officersppThe FBI and US Secret Service investigated the case with valuable assistance provided by the Seminole County Florida Sheriffs Office the Anacortes Washington Police Department the Florida Department of Law Enforcement the California Department of Justice the Los Angeles County California Sheriffs Office and the Volusia County Florida Sheriffs OfficeppAssistant US Attorney Kara Wick for the Middle District of Florida prosecuted the case with valuable assistance from the National Security Divisions Counterterrorism Section the State Attorneys Office for Seminole County Florida 18th Judicial Circuit and the US Attorneys Offices for the Western District of Washington Northern District of Florida Western District of Texas and District of Columbia ppA former Iraqi refugee and legal permanent resident of Richmond Texas has entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organizationppMichael Charles Schena 42 of Alexandria Virginia was arrested on criminal charges related to his alleged participation in a criminal conspiracy to gather transmit or lose national defense information ppJian Zhao and Li Tian activeduty US Army soldiers stationed at Joint Base LewisMcChord along with Ruoyu Duan a former US Army soldier were arrested today following indictments by federalppOffice of Public AffairsUS Department of Justice950 Pennsylvania Avenue NWWashington DC 20530ppOffice of Public Affairs Direct Line2025142007ppDepartment of Justice Main Switchboard2025142000ppSignup for Email UpdatesSocial MediappppHave a question about Government Servicesp
