A Romanian man has pleaded guilty in federal court to "swatting" Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) — but it's just the tip of the iceberg, reported The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday evening.
In fact, the offender, 26-year-old Thomasz Szabo, has gone after more than 100 people in the same way.
Szabo "pleaded guilty to leading a yearslong effort, along with coconspirators, to bring an armed police response to government buildings, houses of worship and private residences where no emergency existed, according to the U.S. Department of Justice," said the report. These "swatting" attacks "targeted about 40 private citizens and 61 public officials between December 2023 and early January 2024."
Swatting is treated as a criminal act because, in addition to the wasted resources for police departments that could be investigating real crimes, a massive armed law enforcement response to an area where there is no threat can potentially injure or kill the target.
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One of the most prominent of Szabo's targets was Greene, a controversial far-right lawmaker known not just for her support of President Donald Trump, but her past embrace of conspiracy theories on social media, including the idea that Jewish space lasers were being used to ignite wildfires.
Greene has actually been a popular target for criminal swatting attacks even before Szabo's operation; in August 2022, she also announced she had been the victim of such an incident and that the experience had been "traumatizing."
"I don't care what political party you are — this is evil. This is not OK. And I will find out who swatted my house. And I will do everything in my power to bring them to justice," she said at the time.
