Fresno’s Clovis West not alone in ‘swatting’ calls. Cities across country hit this week

Clovis West High School in Fresno has been the target of multiple prank calls threatening violence in the past week, when schools around the country have been in the same predicament.

The prank calls — what many young people call “swatting” — cause panic, a lockdown and a police response even when authorities expect that the call is an unfounded threat.

Swatting refers to a heavy police response, which could include a SWAT team. A 2017 case in Wichita, Kansas, that started over an online video game dispute ended with officers shooting a man during a swatting prank.

In Fresno, police have responded to Clovis West four times since last Friday, going through the motions to determine the school is secure. Nearby Fort Washington Elementary has also gone into lockdown mode each time.

Authorities have said the caller could have a connection to the central San Joaquin Valley or could be out of the area or even foreign. The source of the calls can be hard to trace if the culprit uses the right software, investigators say.

FBI Special Agent Brian Nardella in Fresno said investigators are looking into it, and said the motive can be difficult to determine. “There’s all kinds of reasons for why that could be,” Nardella said.

But Fresno was not alone in recent weeks.

A Catholic school in Pensacola, Florida, was on high alert on Wednesday after a report of an active shooter, Pensacola News Journal reported.

Authorities in Vermont reported at least 21 calls threatening unfounded violence on Wednesday, WCAX 3 reported.

At least eight schools in Michigan were targeted Tuesday, leading to responses by local police, ATF and FBI agents, according to the Lansing State Journal.

And at least another five schools got calls on Tuesday in Southern California, NBC 4 said.

According to a report by National Public Radio, there were 113 cases between Sept. 13 and Oct. 5 in 2022. Most of the cases remain unsolved. When the calls originate outside of the U.S., tracking them down becomes even more difficult.

Clovis Unified School District officials said they are determined to find who is behind the calls and are working with police.

Clovis West Principal Eric Swain said in an email to students, teachers and parents earlier this week that the threats are an attempt to scare the community.

“We are all outraged. ... I want you to know that there is a community-wide team of law enforcement and educators ... committed to finding out who this person is so they can face consequences for what they are doing,” he said in an email.