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Emergency call from man who said he’d hurt his family was case of ‘swatting’: police

File photo of police lights. File / Global News

A swatting incident over the weekend, that began with a phone call from a man who said he’d hurt his family, is under investigation by Strathroy-Caradoc Police.

Officers say they got a call around 11 p.m. Sunday, and the unknown individual said he was at an address on Front Street in east Strathroy with a weapon.

Police quickly determined the call was fake and everyone at the home was safe.

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Police learned one call was made through an internet-based number somewhere in Southern California and a second call was based in Montreal.

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Swatting is a harassment tactic that deceives an emergency service into sending a police response team to another person’s address under a fabricated crisis.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Strathroy-Caradoc Police Criminal Investigation Division (519)245-1250 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).

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