Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem issued a major warning on Wednesday to the people responsible for the increased swatting calls that have targeted conservative media figures. Noem warned that President Donald Trump’s administration will “hunt these cowards down.”
In a Wednesday post on X, formerly Twitter, Noem announced, “Under President Trump’s leadership, we will not sit idly by as conservative new media and their families are being targeted by false swatting.”
The secretary of the Department of Homeland Security explained that her department has the ability to trace people’s phone numbers and track the location information of individuals making swatting calls, which forces law enforcement officials to respond to false alarms at people’s residences.
“We will use it to hunt these cowards down,” Noem added. “This is an attack on our law enforcement and innocent families and we will prosecute it as such.”
According to The Post Millennial, multiple conservative influencers and media personalities have been swatted over the past several weeks. Some of the individuals targeted by swatting calls include InfoWars host Owen Shroyer, InfoWars host Chase Geiser, influencer Mike Engleman, radio host Joe Pags, influencer Gunther Eagleman, journalist Walter Curt, and journalist and podcaster Nick Sortor.
READ MORE: Video: News host swatted after co-worker ‘brutally murdered’ in Austin
Last week, Sortor tweeted that his father and sister had been swatted in an attempt to target his family.
“A dozen cops attempted to kick my dad’s door in at gunpoint,” Sortor wrote. “This is literal f-cking terrorism. And the FBI should treat it as such. Before calling in the swat, this dumbsh-t sent my sister an email calling me a Nazi, of course. So the motive is clear.”
Meanwhile, Shroyer shared pictures on Wednesday of the recent swatting attempt that targeted him.
Last week, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director Kash Patel said the FBI was “aware” of the “dangerous trend” and warned that his team was working to investigate and hold individuals accountable for the “alarming rise in ‘Swatting’ incidents targeting media figures.”
“This isn’t about politics—weaponizing law enforcement against ANY American is not only morally reprehensible but also endangers lives, including those of our officers,” Patel said. “That will not be tolerated. We are fully committed to working with local law enforcement to crack down on these crimes.”
According to Fox News, federal lawmakers introduced bipartisan legislation in January to enforce “strict penalties” for individuals who make swatting calls. The outlet noted that the legislation would implement a penalty of up to 20 years in prison if a person was killed or seriously injured due to a swatting incident.