The Orange Park police is working to track down where a fake call came from.
The man who made the call claimed he was going to kill two people, and then himself.
Action News Jax Courtney Cole explains how much real money a fake call can cost.
"Oh my God, I was terrified, I was terrified, I was terrified!" said Ann Cramer.
Cramer said she’s lived in the neighborhood on Wells Landing Drive for about a year now.
Her best friend called her on Thursday morning after she saw the SWAT team in the neighborhood.
"I said, SWAT for what? And I came outside and saw the media everywhere!" Cramer told Action News Jax.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office received a call around 9:20 a.m.
A man, said he was going to shoot two people and kill himself with an AK-47.
#RIGHTNOW Orange Park PD Chief Goble said the police presence was due to a fake call to police. It’s formally known as “swatting.”
— Courtney Cole (@CourtneyANJax) November 15, 2018
-A man called @ccsofl at 9:20 a.m.
-Said he was going to kill himself & 2 others
-SWAT team went inside home and found nothing. @ActionNewsJax pic.twitter.com/Jo5aF4jGFp
Orange Park Police and Clay County SWAT responded, immediately.
When they arrived, and went inside the home on Wells Landing Drive, they found nothing.
Neighbors told Action News Jax Courtney Cole they were stuck inside their homes for at least two hours this morning while SWAT and PD worked to figure out what was going on.
While it was a bit of an inconvenience, they said they’re just glad it wasn't the real thing.
Police said the owner of the home was a victim of "swatting" -- false calls made to get response from law enforcement.
"The gentleman had enough information to know who the owner of the residence was, the address, was able to spell it all out, it seemed real to us,” said Chief Gary Goble of Orange Park Police Department.
Tonight, they're working to figure out who made the call.
“They’re hard cases to work because the calls could be coming from anywhere,” Chief Goble said.
These types of cases also take a lot of resources.
“The SWAT team response, that's huge! Just that alone. Our department, fire rescue on standby,” said Chief Goble.
When Action News Jax asked Orange Park police how much a call like this can cost, he said he couldn’t give me an exact amount—but he imagines it costs tens of thousands of dollars to put 40 to 50 officers into play and for the use of equipment.
Police say the person responsible could also face a multitude of charges.
Cox Media Group
