A Canadian man is alleged to have made dozens of calls to a sheriff’s department in Florida over two months, representatives informed. William Tuckett, 20, was charged with three counts of public disruption and three counts of transmission of false evidence for making reports of crimes to the Marion County Sheriff’s Department in Florida, the Sault Ste. Marie Police in Ontario publicized.
Tuckett is suspected of informing regarding a school shooting danger and a possible hostage situation, which were eventually determined to be faked.
Swatting comprises an individual calling in a false police statement to a target’s home for a vicious crime such as murder, hostage condition, or other crime that would necessitate a greater law enforcement reply. The false police report aims to alert a SWAT team to respond to the target’s home. These pranks are illegal and can be lethal.
Authorities said Tuckett contacted the sheriff’s department on Feb. 16 around 4 p.m. He claimed he was traveling to a local school with a firearm to shoot students and staff. Deputies answered to the danger but, after a thorough search, they concluded that there was no threat to public safety.
The next morning, at around 5:30 a.m., Tuckett supposedly called the sheriff’s department once more and said he was holding a hostage at gunpoint at a house in Ocala, Florida. Police responded to the scene, secured the residence, and confirmed everyone in the household was safe and that there was no hostage situation. On March 18, the sheriff’s department communicated with Sault Ste. Marie Police concerning the calls.
After a joint investigation concerning both agencies, officials concluded that Tuckett had made dozens of untruthful reports to the sheriff’s office concerning a person in their authority that the suspect knows.
Detectives from the Sault Ste. Marie Police’s Investigation Services Department arrested Tuckett at his home. Tuckett was detained in custody awaiting a bail hearing and has subsequently been released. He is arranged to appear in court on April 22.
