He went by the name "Torswats" online, a reference to the particular brand of terror he reveled in unleashing: swatting, or placing a hoax call about a shooting that results in an aggressive police response. In fact, in what a deeply reported story at Wired describes as a "months-long reign of terror" in 2023, Torswats "distinguished himself as perhaps the most prolific American school swatter in history." And schools were not his only target. In the end, he was revealed to be Alan Filion, a 17-year-old at the time of his arrest in Florida's Seminole County. The story by Andy Greenberg and Dhruv Mehrotra explores all aspects of the case—Filion's boastful, taunting role in the online swatting community; the impact on 911 dispatchers duped by sounds of fake gunfire; the police raids themselves, etc.—but its focus is on how a lone private investigator helped authorities crack the case.
The investigator's name is Brad Dennis, who lives outside Seattle. The 36-year-old was once a malicious hacker himself who has since switched sides. Dennis became obsessed with unmasking Torswats and tracked his online movements for two years, starting when Filion would have been only 15. He would eventually turn over all his info to the FBI, leading to a raid on Filion's house and, eventually, an arrest, though Dennis says it took much longer than necessary. Now 18, Filion has pleaded guilty to making interstate threats and faces up to 20 years in prison when sentenced. The story, meanwhile, sees a parallel between the swatter and the investigator who stalked him. Filion, "like Dennis, appeared to have grown up online, finding community in niche forums more than the physical world." (Read the full story.)
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