‘Swatting’ Forces Schools To Shelter-In-Place In East Brunswick Friday

EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ – On Friday morning, East Brunswick High School and Central Elementary School were moved to “shelter-in-place" following a 911 call reporting an incident at the high school, district officials said.

All student and staff members are safe, authorities said.

“Our 911 police dispatch operator received a phone call reporting an incident occurring at our high school that required immediate police assistance,” Superintendent Victor Valeski said.

“This warranted a large police response to the high school and the building was immediately placed in a “Shelter in Place” status.”

Central Elementary School went into shelter-in-place due its proximity to the high school, authorities said.

An investigation found that the call was a hoax, also known as “swatting.”

Members of the district Central Office leadership responded to the high school building to support the administration, Valeski said. The Superintendent said the continuous training with students, staff, administrators, security team and EBPD was “evident today.”

Similar incidents took place in Barnegat and Tom Rivers school districts on Friday.

What Is Swatting?

"Swatting" involves making a hoax 911 call to law enforcement to provoke a large response, such as SWAT teams.

"Swatters" often make fake reports of hostages about to be executed or bombs about to go off, according to the FBI. The hoax calls are made for "bragging rights and ego,"the FBI said.

These hoax calls place communities in danger, as they take away responders from real emergencies, the FBI said.

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