Ronald Sellars has been arrested in connection with a swatting hoax at a Bradenton marina. Image is courtesy of the Hernando County Sheriff's Office.
BRADENTON, Fla. - A Florida man is facing charges after police said they tied his devices to a swatting hoax at the Twin Dolphin Marina, according to the Bradenton Police Department.
Bradenton marina swatting arrest
What we know:
An intense law enforcement response swarmed the Twin Dolphin Marina after a user on the national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline chat platform claimed to be armed on a boat.
Police said the chatter claimed he had killed at least one woman and intended to take his own life, providing a local boat owner's phone number.
Patrol officers, a drone unit, a SWAT team, and hostage negotiators immediately rushed to the docks. Investigators eventually made contact with the boat owner and a woman on board. Both were unharmed and said they didn’t know about the online threats.
The couple identified the woman's husband, 33-year-old Ronald Sellars, noting he had repeatedly tried to contact them on May 28 and May 29.
Although Sellars denied contacting the crisis line, detectives said they uncovered digital evidence linking his personal devices directly to the chat logs.
Sellars was arrested Friday in Hernando County and faces charges of filing a false police report and unlawful use of a two-way communications device.
Florida swatting hoax investigation
What we don't know:
Officials have not yet confirmed the specific motive behind the repeated contact attempts or the exact digital tracking methods used to pinpoint the devices.
Authorities also have not released the identity of the boat owner or the suspect's wife.
What is swatting?
The backstory:
Swatting is the act of making a false emergency report about a critical incident with the intent of triggering a large law enforcement response.
Police say these hoax reports divert emergency resources and create unnecessary hazards during emergency responses.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from the Bradenton Police Department, which explained the arrest and swatting incident.