Two men from Europe were charged with “swatting” dozens of members of Congress and other high-ranking public officials in what the Justice Department described as a conspiracy that lasted four years.
Thomasz Szabo, 26, of Romania, and Nemanja Radovanovic, 21, of Serbia, were charged with 34 felony counts for allegedly perpetrating the harassment scheme.
Swatting — a practice in which false 911 calls are placed to trigger a massive police presence at a residence or business — has been a widespread problem in recent years for elected representatives, judges and other prominent officials.
Szabo and Radovanovic targeted 61 public officials and 40 private individuals with swatting attempts, the Justice Department said. The public officials include members of the House and Senate, Cabinet-level executive branch officials, senior officials of federal law enforcement agencies, and state officials. The names of the victims have not been released.
The two defendants also made bomb threats against unnamed businesses, religious institutions and a university, the Justice Department said.
The scheme began in December 2020 and continued until January 2024, according to an indictment unveiled Wednesday by federal prosecutors in Washington D.C.
As political polarization has intensified, members of Congress from both parties have reported being targeted by swatting incidents — including on holidays and during family dinners.
Last year, Rep. Brandon Williams (R-N.Y.) disclosed a “swatting” incident on Christmas.
“Our home was swatted this afternoon,” he wrote on X. “Thanks to the Deputies and Troopers who contacted me before arriving.”
Three days later, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said her two daughters were swatted.
And earlier this year, Rep. Shontel Brown (D-Ohio) denounced swatting after she was targeted.
“It is truly alarming that someone would attempt to harass or intimidate me in this way, while also forcing law enforcement to devote resources unnecessarily,” Brown said. “No one deserves this, and it puts so many people at real risk.”
Former Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) retired from Congress this year after an anonymous call was placed to law enforcement falsely claiming that Gallagher had been shot and that his wife and two young daughters were held hostage.
“I signed up for the death threats and the late-night swatting, but they did not. And for a young family, I would say this job is really hard,” Gallagher told reporters.
Members of Congress are not the only public figures who have experienced harassment. Judges, prosecutors and others involved in Donald Trump’s legal battles have experienced swatting, death threats, racist insults and other threats.
“Swatting is not a victimless prank — it endangers real people, wastes precious police resources, and inflicts significant emotional trauma,” said Matthew Graves, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, whose office brought the charges against Szabo and Radovanovic.
