Swatting Pranks Trigger False Alarms at US Universities

By Staff, Agencies

Police and SWAT teams responded to an active shooter report at Villanova University, a private Catholic campus near Philadelphia, clearing buildings Thursday afternoon.

Students and nearby residents were instructed to shelter in place, while those on campus were told to lock or barricade doors.

Videos posted on social media showed people fleeing the area in panic, while multiple students said they had barricaded themselves inside rooms.

Villanova President Peter Donohue later called the report of a shooter a “cruel hoax.”

“There was no active shooter, no injuries, and no evidence of firearms on campus,” he said in an emailed statement to the media.

The incident appears to be the second case of a swatting prank against a US college this week. On Tuesday, a shooting was falsely reported at Doane University in Nebraska, prompting a lockdown and police response.