Australian teen charged with making hoax mass shooting calls to U.S.

An Australian teenage boy is facing 13 charges after being accused of calling in hoax reports of mass shootings at U.S. stores and educational institutions that caused widespread panic, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said on Tuesday.

The investigation began after authorities received FBI intelligence about an Australia-based member of an online crime network suspected of being linked to major “swatting” hoax calls.

(Swatting involves calling in fake emergencies to trigger a large-scale law enforcement response.)

The AFP launched Taskforce Pompilid in October 2025 to combat members of online decentralized crime networks who use their perceived anonymity and online sophistication to engage in criminal behaviour.

A significant number of electronic devices, as well as a prohibited firearm, were seized from the teen’s New South Wales home last month, according to police.

The boy is facing 13 charges, including 12 counts of using a telecommunications network with the intention to commit a serious offence and one count of unauthorized possession of a prohibited firearm.

He is scheduled to first appear in a New South Wales Children’s Court on Tuesday and could face a maximum of almost 20 years in prison.

“Taskforce Pompilid is the AFP’s commitment to stopping the harm and pain members of this online crime network are inflicting on society, under the mistaken belief they are anonymous,” Graeme Marshall, acting assistant commissioner, said.

“These perpetrators, often young males aged from 11-25, are engaging in crime types such as swatting, doxxing and hacking to achieve status, notoriety and recognition in their online groups,” he continued.

“In this investigation, a young boy from regional NSW allegedly caused widespread alarm and turmoil to thousands of people, businesses and services in the United States, resulting in significant financial implications.”

The FBI said in the statement that it views swatting as a “dangerous and disruptive crime” and warned that online anonymity is an illusion.

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The AFP also addressed concerns parents may have about their children participating in or becoming victims of illegal online activity, and suggested monitoring their online footprint, maintaining open conversations with their kids about being online and seeking professional or community support when concerns arise.

Incidents of swatting calls have also been reported in Canada.

Last October, RCMP officers in Nova Scotia were called twice to the same home for fake emergencies, once for gunshots and the second for an illegal burn.

“These types of calls are not pranks; they are criminal acts with potential legal consequences that tie up resources and can create risk in the community,” the RCMP said.

In late 2024, Waterloo Regional Police charged a youth over 13 separate swatting incidents targeting secondary schools, public events, private residences, individuals and businesses.

In the first incident, Waterloo Police received a call from an individual threatening to bring a handgun to St. Mary’s High School in Kitchener and to cause harm to students, resulting in the closure of the school and the cancellation of an annual Relay for Life event hosted in support of the Canadian Cancer Society.

Over the next five months, several other swatting incidents occurred, including threats to detonate an explosive at a Kitchener business, shoot individuals in a residence and conduct mass shootings at a Canada Day celebration in Victoria Park and two Kitchener schools, leading to further closures, police said.