Romanian Leader of Swatting Ring Gets Four Years in U.S. Prison

A Romanian national who led an online swatting ring targeting U.S. officials, churches, journalists, and other victims has been sentenced to four years in federal prison.

Thomasz Szabo, 27, received a 48-month sentence in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. He must also serve three years of supervised release after prison.

Szabo pleaded guilty in June 2025 to one count of conspiracy and one count of threats involving explosives. Prosecutors said he led a years-long campaign that used fake emergency calls and bomb threats to provoke armed law enforcement responses.

What the swatting ring targeted

The Justice Department said Szabo’s online group targeted more than 75 public officials, four religious institutions, and multiple journalists. The victims included members of Congress, cabinet-level officials, federal law enforcement leaders, state officials, judges, and members of the media.

Swatting is a criminal tactic where someone falsely reports an active violent threat at a victim’s address. The goal is to trigger a police or emergency response, often with armed officers sent to the location.

These calls can put victims, officers, neighbors, and bystanders in danger. They also pull emergency resources away from real incidents.

At a glance

Detail	Information
Defendant	Thomasz Szabo
Age and nationality	27, Romanian national
Sentence	48 months in federal prison
Supervised release	Three years
Guilty plea	June 2, 2025
Charges admitted	Conspiracy and threats involving explosives
Extradition	Extradited from Romania in November 2024
Main victims	Public officials, religious institutions, journalists, and private victims

Threats began years before the sentencing

According to court documents, Szabo founded and led an online community that began swatting and bomb threat activity in late 2020. He also encouraged followers to carry out similar attacks.

Prosecutors said Szabo personally made false reports to U.S. law enforcement. Those included a December 2020 threat about a mass shooting at New York City synagogues and a January 2021 threat to detonate explosives at the U.S. Capitol and kill the president-elect.

The group later escalated into a concentrated wave of attacks from December 2023 through early January 2024. That spree targeted at least 25 members of Congress or their family members.

Public officials were not the only victims

The same wave also hit at least six senior executive branch officials, including multiple cabinet-level figures. Prosecutors said senior federal law enforcement officials, federal judiciary members, state officials, religious institutions, and journalists were also targeted.

One member of the group allegedly bragged to Szabo about carrying out more than 25 swatting attacks in one day. The same person claimed the attacks wasted more than $500,000 in taxpayer money over two days.

The Justice Department said Szabo used several online aliases, including Plank, Jonah, and Cypher. Earlier charging documents listed additional names used in online chat groups.

Co-defendant still faces separate proceedings

Szabo was charged in 2024 alongside Serbian national Nemanja Radovanovic. Prosecutors said Radovanovic’s case remains separate and unresolved.

The indictment accused the two men and others of taking part in a conspiracy that began no later than December 2020 and continued through January 2024. The alleged group collected home addresses and other personal details before making false emergency reports.

The Justice Department said the case involved support from the U.S. Secret Service, the FBI, U.S. Capitol Police, and international law enforcement partners.

Why the sentence matters

Federal officials used the sentencing to stress that swatting is not a prank. False emergency reports can create panic, waste law enforcement resources, and expose innocent people to armed police responses.

The case also shows how online harassment groups can cause real-world danger from outside the United States. Szabo operated from Romania before he was extradited to face prosecution in the U.S.

For public officials, journalists, and religious institutions, swatting remains a serious safety risk. It can also become part of broader harassment campaigns that combine doxxing, threats, and coordinated online abuse.

How targets can reduce swatting risk

• Limit public exposure of home addresses, personal phone numbers, and family details.
• Set up alerts for new online posts that mention personal addresses or private information.
• Use privacy services where available to remove personal data from people-search websites.
• Tell local law enforcement in advance if you face credible swatting threats.
• Keep records of threats, aliases, usernames, emails, phone numbers, and screenshots.
• Report threats involving violence, explosives, or emergency hoaxes to law enforcement quickly.

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