Law enforcement officials in Texas have arrested a 13-year-old
child suspected of making false 911 calls, including one that sent
Gilroy and South County police officers scrambling to a report of a
hostage situation at a home on Santa Barbara Drive May 10,
according to the Gilroy Police Department.
Law enforcement officials in Texas have arrested a 13-year-old boy suspected of making false 911 calls, including one that sent Gilroy and South County police officers scrambling to a May 10 report of a hostage situation at a home on Santa Barbara Drive, according to the Gilroy Police Department.
During an investigation following the incident, GPD detectives traced the call to the suspect and learned that similar calls had been made in cities within Illinois and Texas.
Through a collaboration with Illinois and Texas agencies, police determined that a 13 year-old boy was responsible for the false calls to different law enforcement jurisdictions. The juvenile was arrested by authorities in Texas for multiple internet hacking charges, according to the GPD.
Gilroy police are working with the cities in Illinois and Texas for criminal prosecution against the juvenile. The City of Gilroy will also seek financial restitution for resources expended during the incident from the parents of the juvenile suspect, according to the GPD.
Around 2:35 p.m. May 10, Gilroy police received a report from an unknown caller that armed suspects had entered a home in the 7700 block of Santa Barbara Drive and held its residents hostage.
A regional SWAT team was dispatched, and a 1 hour, 40 minute standoff ensued. After searching the residence and contacting the home’s owner, officers determined the report was a hoax.
To read more on the false alarm, click here.
