A Romanian national pleaded guilty on Monday to charges related to his role in a “swatting” ring that targeted dozens of public officials, including a former US president.
Going by the aliases “Plank,” “Jonah” and “Cypher,” 26-year-old Thomasz Szabo took part in a years-long conspiracy to place bogus 911 calls, claiming emergencies were taking place at the homes of top government officials, and make bomb threats against government buildings and houses of worship, according to Justice Department.
Szabo and a co-conspirator, 21-year-old Serbian national Nemanja Radovanovic, allegedly targeted about 100 people, including members of Congress, governors, cabinet-level executive branch officials and state officials.
One of their alleged victims is identified as a “former elected official from the executive branch” who was swatted on Jan. 9. 2024, when Radovanovic falsely reported a murder at the home of the former president or vice president – who is not named in the indictment – and threatened to blow up the person’s residence.
Several of the victims were selected by Szabo, who directed Radovanovic to place the emergency calls targeting both Republicans and Democrats, according to the indictment.
“We are not on any side,” Szabo allegedly told Radovanovic.
The menacing calls started around December 2020, when Szabo called a crisis intervention hotline and threatened to “commit a mass shooting at multiple unspecified synagogues in New York City,” the indictment states.
Around Jan. 17, 2021, Szabo allegedly called another crisis intervention hotline and threatened to detonate explosives at the US Capitol Building and kill then-President-elect Joe Biden.
The duo’s last “swatting” call listed in the indictment was placed by Radovanovic on Jan. 9, 2024, which reported a homicide at the home of a state governor.
Szabo, who was extradited from Romania last November, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of making bomb threats.
He is slated to be sentenced in a Washington, DC, federal court in October.
“This defendant led a dangerous swatting criminal conspiracy, deliberately threatening dozens of government officials with violent hoaxes and targeting our nation’s security infrastructure from behind a screen overseas,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. “This case reflects our continued focus on protecting the American people and working with international partners to stop these threats at their source.”
FBI Director Kash Patel declared that swatting “will not be tolerated by the FBI.”
“Today, Szabo pleaded guilty to a years-long conspiracy that targeted victims with swatting and bomb threats, including to government buildings, houses of worship and homes of government officials,” Patel said in a statement. “Swatting endangers lives and will not be tolerated by the FBI.”
“We are fully committed to working with our partners to bring to justice those criminals hiding behind keyboards and threatening violence.”
Charges against Radovanovic are still pending.
