PRINCETON, Minn. — About two dozen officers responded to an emergency call that reported a shooting in this east-central Minnesota community Thursday afternoon, Sept. 12, only to discover it was Princeton's second swatting incident this month.
The male caller stated that he had just shot a woman at a residence on the west side of the city. The call was later classified as a "swatting incident" by Princeton Police Chief Todd Frederick.
Swatting is a criminal harassment tactic of deceiving an emergency service (via such means as hoaxing an emergency services dispatcher) into sending police and emergency service response teams to another person’s address.
Frederick said the incident "appears to be similar to the one that occurred Sept. 1," when a male caller reported harming three people and was about to harm himself on the city's north side.
Frederick said authorities performed welfare checks at nearby homes.
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Frederick said his department has been working with Sherburne County’s intelligence unit and plans to work with the FBI as the investigation on both instances continues.
Princeton is about 50 miles north of the Twin Cities.
