In Lake County, a 17-year-old from Medina, Ohio, has been charged as an adult in a case involving a series of threatening calls to area high schools.
The charges, filed on Thursday in Lake Superior Court, include two counts of intimidation and one count of false reporting.
Following the transfer of his case to adult court, the teen posted a $5,000 bond on Friday.
History of ‘Swatting’ Calls Leads to Adult Charges
Authorities have described the teen’s actions as part of a “repetitive pattern,” which influenced the decision to charge him as an adult.
According to Ohio officials, the teenager began making these ‘swatting’ calls in 2019 at the age of 13. One of his false claims included an assertion that he had harmed his father, a claim disproven when police found no injuries.
The teen is also suspected in more than 30 other swatting cases, some involving high-profile targets like a Black Lives Matter leader in Los Angeles and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
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Incident at Hobart High School Raises Alarm
The situation escalated on January 26, 2023, when Hobart High School received a threatening voicemail. The message warned of imminent violence at the school. Similar calls were made to schools in Valparaiso, Portage, and Wheeler.
Investigators quickly focused on the Medina teen, already a suspect in prior bomb threats and swatting calls. They believe he made the threats to Hobart and Valparaiso High Schools from Medina within a two-hour timeframe.
The teen’s legal troubles extend beyond Lake County. He was previously waived to adult court in Porter County for a related intimidation case and was extradited from Ohio to the Porter County Juvenile Center in March. The series of events underscores the serious consequences of swatting and the legal system’s response to such threats.