DCSO Responds to "Swatting" Calls

Douglas County Sheriff's Office Responds to "Swatting" Calls
Posted on 02/16/2023
Douglas County Sheriff's Office Responds to "Swatting" Calls

Minden, Nevada - On February 16, 2023 at 11:15 am, a caller reported to the Douglas County Communications Center that they were entering the “school and shooting everyone they see,” with an AR-15 rifle. The address given was to the Sierra Chef—a cooking school and business in Genoa, NV. As the caller hung up, dispatchers could hear the sound of gunfire in the background. Douglas County Sheriff Deputies responded to the Sierra Chef location and didn’t encounter any indications of violence. As a precaution, all Carson Valley Schools were in “lockdown” for the safety of the students and teachers. All schools resumed to a normal school day once no threat was discovered.

During the past month, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) has received three “swatting” type fictitious calls for service. These callers are reporting an active shooter incident. DCSO Deputies of all ranks and divisions have responded to these calls to only find nothing is occurring. DCSO takes these incidents very seriously, and will continue to investigate these incidents and more information will be released upon discovery.    

“We are working with the Nevada Threat Analysis Center (NTAC) and the Nevada State Police to help us identify the caller,” said Douglas County Sheriff Daniel Coverley. “It appears they are using a computer line to hide their identification when placing the calls to our 911 center. This type of misuse of 911 puts the community and the Deputies responding at risk. It can also add confusion or cause our 911 center and responding deputies to question the validity of a real incident.”

According to NTAC, they have received various reports of “swatting” throughout the state.