YouTube, Discord, and Lord of the Rings Led Police to a Teen Accused of a US Swatting Spree
WiredJAN 2024
Teen Arrested Over Hundreds of Alleged Swatting Incidents
Image copyright: David Ryder/Stringer/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
It's disappointing that at a time of an encouraging decrease in violent crime, law enforcement is now dealing with an increase in swatting. But a new FBI database will make it easier for it to work with local police to hold swatters to account. Swatting is dangerous for victims and law enforcement alike and is a drain on resources. It's worth the investment because sometimes these incidents turn tragic.
Establishment-critical narrative
The FBI database of swatting incidents is a great tool, and there has been great detective work done to track down swatters like Filion. However, the FBI identified this problem more than a decade ago and several attempts to establish a federal anti-swatting law have failed, and technology continues to be on the side of the criminals. More must be done to crack down on this dangerous act of criminality.
Cynical narrative
Americans should be skeptical of FBI claims of growing domestic terrorism. Threats like the alleged D.C. pipe bomb threat during the Jan. 6, 2021 riots at the US Capitol turned out to be erroneous. The FBI shouldn't be taken at its word when it makes claims about increasing threats and creating new "databases" should be eyed with concern.
Metaculus Prediction
There's a 50% chance that the US murder rate will be at least 5.53 per 100k inhabitants in 2030, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
