OHIO VALLEY- With a new school year approaching and following a rash of hoax threats across the Ohio Valley last year, the Pittsburgh Field Office of the FBI sent out a reminder to the public Thursday saying they will seek to prosecute anyone sending out hoax threats.
School districts across the region and U.S. were the target of multiple hoax threats, or “swatting” during the 2024-2025 school year.
The West Virginia Department of Homeland Security received more than 200 school threats statewide starting back from September 2024 through early 2025, most of which were hoaxes.
The FBI says it doesn’t matter how a fake threat of violence spreads, whether by telephone, text message, paper signs, or even social media. Calling in even a fake threat of violence is not only a state crime, it’s also a federal one, and hoaxers will be held accountable to the law.
