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‘Swatting’ call to Clint Eastwood home doesn’t make LAPD’s day

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It didn’t make the LAPD’s day when officers dispatched to a home owned by Clint Eastwood in Bel-Air quickly found out the legendary actor was apparently the latest victim of a ‘swatting’ incident.

Police had been told there were men with assault weapons at the residence.

But officers quickly determined no one was in danger at the home, avoiding the full-scale tactical response that has arrived at ‘swatting’ incidents at the home of other celebrities, Lt. Andrew Neiman said.

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Officers said that, as in earlier cases, the 911 call was likely the work of pranksters seeking to unleash a large police presence at the home of a celebrity.

The call to Eastwood’s residence occurred Tuesday; it was unclear if anyone was actually staying there at the time.

On Thursday, a ‘swatting’ call was made in an effort to bring a large police response to the Playboy mansion. Again, police were quickly able to confirm nothing dangerous was occurring at the Holmby Hills mansion. This week’s incidents are the latest in a recent rash of hoax 911 calls reporting fake crimes at celebrities’ homes. What began as a prank among party-line callers and gamers in recent months has spread to target celebrities, authorities say.

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Victims in recent months include Ashton Kutcher, Justin Bieber, Tom Cruise and Simon Cowell. Earlier this month, a 12-year-old was charged with making 911 calls and reporting fake crimes to police, sending them to Kutcher’s home and a Wells Fargo Bank branch.

Law enforcement officials have said that swatting is a problem because it diverts resources from real emergencies.

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-- Richard Winton


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