No Hostages, No Explosives At Spring Valley Target: Police

SPRING VALLEY, NY — Police in and around Spring Valley were victims of a "swatting" call Thursday in which a man claimed he was at the Spring Valley Target armed with a gun and explosives.

Spring Valley police said they received the call at 5:35 p.m. The man also claimed he had hostages, police said.

The Target store was evacuated and searched by police, bomb squads and police dogs from several law enforcement agencies.

"Once the Target Store was deemed safe of any immediate threat, the store was re-opened as well as the rest of vehicular and pedestrian traffic to the Spring Valley Marketplace," police said in a statement at 9:30 p.m. Thursday. "Although the investigation is currently pending, it appears that the initial call was a 'swatting' incident."

"Swatting" usually involves someone calling in a fake emergency involving a victim to get a SWAT team to respond. The FBI calls it dangerous for first responders and victims.

"The callers often tell tales of hostages about to be executed or bombs about to go off," according to the FBI. "The community is placed in danger as responders rush to the scene, taking them away from real emergencies. And the officers are placed in danger as unsuspecting residents may try to defend themselves."

The situation Thursday was reported on social media at about 6 p.m. based on police scanner calls.

There were social media reports that police requested bomb-sniffing dogs to the store and called for fire trucks and ambulances to stand by.

For a couple of hours, people responded with questions, expressed horror, wrote about what they saw when they drove by, and shared rumors widely.

The Clarkstown Police Department posted on Facebook at 8:15 p.m., "There are no hostages or injuries at the Target store at this time. Spring Valley PD is the lead agency on scene, they will be releasing further details regarding this incident."

The Target is in the Spring Valley Marketplace, which has 24 stores, including Christmas Tree Shops and Bingo Wholesale.

Spring Valley police thanked the agencies who assisted, including the Clarkstown Police Department, Ramapo Police Department, Rockland County Sheriff's Office, New York State Police, MTA Police, South Nyack-Grandview Police Department, FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Spring Valley Fire Department, Spring Hill Community Ambulance Corps and Rockland County Paramedic Services.