FBI Director Kash Patel vows to 'crack down' on swatting incidents against conservative journalists, influencers

FBI Director Kash Patel put out a statement on Friday in response to the swatting incidents against conservative influencers over the past week, of which there appear to be at least seven. Swatting is when a suspect calls in a fake call to 911 saying that an individual is seeking to harm someone else, causing officers to respond in force to the address given.

"I want to address the alarming rise in ‘Swatting’ incidents targeting media figures," Patel said. "The FBI is aware of this dangerous trend, and my team and I are already taking action to investigate and hold those responsible accountable." 

"This isn’t about politics—weaponizing law enforcement against ANY American is not only morally reprehensible but also endangers lives, including those of our officers. That will not be tolerated."

"We are fully committed to working with local law enforcement to crack down on these crimes. More updates to come."

On Wednesday, InfoWars host Chase Geiser reported that he was swatted twice. The first time was on Tuesday, less than two days after his colleague Jamie White was murdered in the parking lot of his apartment complex. By Thursday, Geiser said neither he nor his wife had "heard from a detective." Nick Sortor, who was also swatted later in the week, replied with contempt for law enforcement for not taking the "murder attempts seriously."

Radio talk show host Joe Pags, on Thursday, said that his family was swatted as well, and showed the surveillance footage from his home system of officers arriving, guns drawn.

Influencer Mike Engleman shared on Friday morning that he was swatted, saying: "Good morning, everyone! Imagine my shocked face when I was woken up at 130am by law enforcement standing in front of my home locked and loaded after a swatting attempt! I'm a nobody living in a sleepy community of 2800 people! Sleepless night in southern Indiana!"

Walter Curt reported that he was swatted on Friday morning.

Nick Sortor shared on Thursday morning around 2 am that he had been swatted, and he included that prior to that, the person he suspects sent an email to his sister calling him a "Nazi." The swatting was also done to Sortor's father. "In my dad’s case, the caller told police my dad was killing my entire family, requiring them to intervene with deadly force," Sortor said. "This is nothing short of attempted murder. They wanted the police to kill my father."

Gunther Eagleman said he was also the victim of a swatting attack. "The gloves are off. First off, my family is safe," Eagleman said on X. "My house was just swatted. Some ignorant f*ck called in a fake hostage situation. Fortunately, I have good relations with law enforcement, and extra patrols will be added. I don’t tolerate threats and will find the culprit. This was their worst mistake."

He replied positively to Patel's message, saying "LETS GO!!! Thank you Kash!"