"They possibly could be testing us": Police explain the dangers of 'swatting' calls after police swarm Chelsea Home Depot
CHELSEA -- Police are investigating a so-called swatting call that sent officers swarming the Parkway Plaza shopping center in Chelsea Thursday with reports of an active shooter. It sent people running for cover.
An employee at a nearby store, who doesn't want to be identified, said it was frightening. "All we saw were police we had no idea what was going on until many a good ten minutes later someone ran into the store and were like 'someone brought a gun into Home Depot.'"
Patricia Ginewicz, a manager at the Dollar Tree, said everyone was nervous. "They ran in, they were asking if they could hide. People asking if they could hide in the bathrooms," she said.
It started with a call to a dental office in the shopping center, a person claiming he'd be coming in armed.
Employees and patients ran to Home Depot next door and police said the situation mushroomed with false information.
It wasn't just a hoax, they said, but a terroristic threat, a so-called swatting call that pulls police resources in one direction and the caller knows it.
"These locations are purposefully targeted because it causes chaos," said Chelsea police Captain Keith Houghton. "We're worried that they possibly could be testing us, see how our response is, and meanwhile have a real incident happen someplace else while all our police resources are tied up."
Security analyst Ed Davis said it creates a dangerous situation. "Officers are driving at high rates of speed, there's the potential for the use of firearms, police are getting there expecting an armed incident," said Davis.
Dimas Villanueva, who works at a game store in the plaza, said it's frustrating to learn it was all a false alarm after hiding in a backroom amid the panic. "We couldn't tell what was going on," he said. "It was really bad and a little nerve-wracking,"
Police said dental offices in Somerville and Fall River were also called around the same time as Chelsea. State Police and the FBI have also joined the investigation.
