WASHINGTON (AP) — Two men from Europe have been charged with making false police emergency reports and attempting to harass and intimidate members of Congress, U.S. government officials and dozens of others, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday.
According to the federal indictment, Tomas Szabo, 26, of Romania, and Nemanja Radovanovic, 21, of Serbia, made “swatting” calls to at least 100 people, provoking aggressive responses by police officers at the victims' homes.
The calls also included threats to carry out a mass shooting at a synagogue in New York City and to detonate explosives at the U.S. Capitol and at a university, according to the indictment, which was handed up by a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., last Thursday.
Online court records in Washington don't say whether Sabo and Radovanovic have been arrested or whether they are represented by lawyers. Investigators believe they were in different foreign countries last week, according to court documents attached to the indictment. A spokesman for Graves' office declined to provide details.
Szabo and Radovanovic are charged with conspiracy and more than 20 counts of racketeering. Prosecutors say the conspiracy took place over three years, from December 2020 to January 2024.
“Swatting is not a victimless prank; it puts real people at risk, wastes valuable police resources, and inflicts significant psychological trauma,” Matthew Graves, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, said in a statement.
According to the indictment, Szabo organized and controlled chat groups to coordinate swatting attacks against 40 private citizens and 61 federal officials, including cabinet-level members of the executive branch of the federal government, the heads of federal law enforcement agencies, federal judges, current and former governors, and other state officials.
According to the indictment, Radovanovic allegedly called government agencies in December 2023 and January 2024 to falsely report murder and suicide threats and kidnappings occurring at the homes of U.S. senators, representatives and state elected officials. One of the calls resulted in a car accident with injuries, according to the indictment.
