PLEASANT GROVE, Utah, Dec. 26, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — Police investigators in Pleasant Grove are promising to have the last laugh on a prank phone caller who had officers from multiple agencies going code Christmas night as they responded a bloody domestic violence scene that did not exist.
“It was not a legitimate call. Everything is fine. Everyone is safe,” a clearly perturbed Pleasant Grove Police Captain Smith told Gephardt Daily. “So, now we’re just in the process of conducting an investigation to determine who is responsible, so that we can prosecute.”
The swatting call came into emergency dispatchers about 7:45 p.m. with reports of a domestic shooting and possible hostage situation unfolding in a neighborhood near 800 N. 100 E. Pleasant Grove.
Police streamed into the area as officers established a perimeter around the bogus shooting site.
In a matter of minutes police confirmed the call itself was phony.
“They think it’s funny to have SWAT raid somebody’s home on Christmas. We need to remind them it’s not very funny at all. They’ll learn their lesson,” Smith said.
Swatting is defined as a prank call made to first responders with the goal of generating a mass police response to a specific location, most often a private residence.
