Swatting Incident Prompts Police Response In Toms River

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Authorities are investigating a swatting incident in Toms River that prompted rumors of a shooting on Friday.

Swatting is making a false report of an emergency to public safety with the intent of getting a "SWAT team" response to a location where no emergency exists, Toms River police said.

The police department said the incident prompted a heavy police response, but they quickly determined it to be a swatting and no one was injured or in any type of danger.

"Many times during an initial call and dispatch, several pieces of information are coming in that have to be verified in a police investigation," police said. "While we appreciate the public wanting to know what is happening in real-time, information that is posted or shared by others may turn out to be inaccurate."

"We ask the public to please be patient while our officers and detectives do their jobs so that we can provide you with a true account of an incident," police said.

Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters here, or download our app to have breaking news alerts sent right to your phone. Have a news tip? Email karen.wall@patch.com Follow Toms River Patch on Facebook.