Officials Search For 911 Caller Who Targeted Kardashian Home
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles County sheriff's officials are looking for the person who called 911 and falsely reported an emergency at a former Malibu residence of the Kardashians.
Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said Sunday that it's too soon to tell whether the reality TV stars are the latest victims of so-called "swatting," a hoax intended to get officers, including specialized SWAT teams, sent to a home.
Deputies responded to the call Friday at a house in Malibu where the Kardashians formerly lived, Whitmore said. After finding the house empty the deputies contacted the family and went to their new home about 20 miles away in Hidden Hills, he said. They found no crime had been committed. No arrests were made.
Kim Kardashian, who was not home at the time, decried the hoax on Twitter, calling it "dangerous" and "not a joke."
"These prank calls are NOT funny!," she wrote Friday. Kardashian said her mother called her after at least 15 officers arrived on their doorstep.
Whitmore said sheriff's officials and other California law enforcement agencies will lobby state lawmakers to make "swatting" a felony.
Authorities are investigating "scores" of similar cases across the state, he said. In some instances, the hoaxers use technology that makes it appear that the 911 calls were made inside the homes where police are sent, according to Whitmore.
"What we want to do is have the legislature turn up the heat on these people," he said. "This is a serious, serious crime."
Police last week responded to a false report of an armed robbery at Tom Cruise's Beverly Hills home. In December, a boy was arrested after police said he made calls that reported violence at the homes of Justin Bieber and Ashton Kutcher.
Kim Kardashian is the star of the E! Entertainment Television series "Keeping Up with the Kardashians," the network's top-rated show. She also appears on other shows involving her family.
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