Two foreign nationals have been charged in connection with a yearslong swatting conspiracy that targeted U.S. lawmakers and other high-profile individuals, according to the Department of Justice.
Tomasz Szabo, 26, of Romania, and Nemanja Radovanovic, 21, of Serbia, allegedly obtained personal information and home addresses of over 100 victims and orchestrated a series of “swatting” incidents from December 2020 to January 2023.
These incidents involved false reports of emergencies to provoke armed police responses.
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The indictment, unsealed on Wednesday, reveals that among the 61 targeted “official victims” were members of Congress, Cabinet-level officials, senior federal law enforcement officials, and state authorities. Additionally, the pair reportedly called in bomb threats against four businesses, four religious institutions, and a university. Szabo allegedly made threats to detonate explosives at the Capitol and kill the president-elect on January 17, 2021, and threatened mass murder and bombings at the Capitol on January 6, 2022.
Both Szabo and Radovanovic face charges including one count of conspiracy, 29 counts of making threats and providing false information about explosives, and four counts of transmitting threats across state and international borders.
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Swatting, often viewed as a dangerous hoax, has severe consequences. “Swatting is not a victimless prank — it endangers real people, wastes precious police resources, and inflicts significant emotional trauma,” said Matthew M. Graves, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. “We will use every tool at our disposal to find the perpetrators and hold them accountable, no matter where they might be.”
The indictment does not disclose the identities of the specific individuals targeted by Szabo and Radovanovic. However, some lawmakers have publicly acknowledged being victims of swatting attempts. Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, for example, reported on social media that she had been swatted for the eighth time on Christmas Day.
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In a conversation, Szabo and Radovanovic discussed targeting members of both U.S. political parties, claiming they were not on any side.
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