Caller Claimed To Have Bomb 'Strapped To His Body' At North Jersey Pizza Hut In Latest 'Swatting' Incident

A man who claimed to have a bomb at a North Jersey Pizza Hut turned out to be another bogus “swatting” caller, authorities said.

The caller claimed to have a bomb “strapped to his body,” Fort Lee Police Chief Keith Bendul told WABC-TV in New York.

The incident closed Route 46 in both directions for more than four hours, according to Fort Lee police.

The incident happened at 6:53 p.m. Sunday when police received received a call from a person threatening to be suicidal at the Pizza Hut in Fort Lee - and possessing a fully automatic rifle, according to Cliffview Pilot.

The same person threatened to kill all the patrons in the restaurant, and a second caller from an another individual said there were several people at the restaurant acting suspicious, and that police should be sent there to investigate, according to the report.

Fort Lee police surrounded the building, evacuated 20 or so customers and about a half-dozen employees; a command post was set up at the Exxon station next door, and there was a request for bomb-detection dogs, according to the report.

At least four “swatting” incidents, which involve callers who try to trick emergency personnel to respond to a bogus catastrophic incident, have been reported throughout New Jersey this year.

Holmdel Schools have been the victims of three swatting cases this year, and those three cases all occurred on a Tuesday - last week, May 5 and March 31.

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