Three men will face federal criminal charges in connection with a “swatting” incident that sparked a deadly police shooting in Kansas, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Tyler Barriss — who is accused of placing a hoax phone call from Los Angeles that sent police racing to a Wichita address — and two teenage gamers playing “Call of Duty” online face wire fraud and other charges in connection with the Dec. 28, 2017, shooting, according to indictments unsealed Wednesday.
Barriss is already awaiting trial on involuntary manslaughter charges in Wichita, but on Wednesday, federal prosecutors also charged Casey Viner, 18, of North College Hill, Ohio, and Shane Gaskill, 19, of Wichita, for their roles in the incident that led a police officer to shoot and kill 28-year-old Andrew Finch.
Cybersecurity experts believe the shooting marks the first time an incident of swatting, in which someone makes a false report of an emergency to provoke a massive police response, has led to a death in the U.S.
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