Naploeon, MI. – On Tuesday, May 5, 2026, the Napoleon, Michigan, Schools received phone calls reporting armed threats. Many kids had already left school, but some were put in lockdown status, not knowing what was going on and not knowing what the result would be. Parents were on social media freaking out, scared as could be, and worried, with just cause. Law enforcement were on the case right away, and everybody, the staff, the community, everyone responded accordingly, and kudos to them. The kids were released when no real threat was found.
School was canceled the next day just to double-check for everyone’s safety. Nothing harmful was found, and this is believed to be a result of what has been termed a “swatting” incident. These happen all the time, and it’s supposedly a prank, but there is nothing funny about it. It harms many people, including the psyche of many younger kids, and places fear and mistrust in their hearts and minds, and nothing in the world that does that is ever good!
In East Lansing, Michigan, High School, they had “swatting” threats on Friday and again on Tuesday. The Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel issued a statement calling on lawmakers to enact stricter penalties for those who make false threats, pointing to how these incidents divert resources from law enforcement and the psychological harm they cause for those targeted.
Making a false threat to draw a large response from law enforcement is not a new trend. Going back more than two decades, there have been instances of people calling in false emergencies, like bomb threats and hostage situations, aiming to elicit a response from Special Weapons and Tactics, or SWAT, teams. Thus, the term “Swatting”.
What has changed is who is being targeted by swatting calls. Previously, the calls tended to be individuals targeting other individuals at their homes. Now, swatting calls often target larger entities, like schools. And you can’t ignore it because it could turn out to be real.
When I was in Elementary School they had to eliminate some bus lines due to a lack of funding. I remember a girl who called in a bomb threat to the school. I still remember her name. She was upset she wouldn’t get to ride the bus anymore. This was before caller i.d. and the advanced technology we have now, but they eventually figured out who it was and caught her. I remember how scary it was because we had no clue why we were locked down. So I feel bad for anybody, especially children, who have to go through this!
These Swatting calls are sometimes done by individuals with a connection to the entity they’re targeting, but it is now much more common for the type of calls that Naploeon schools received to be done by a “small digital collective” that has no geographic ties to its target. Swatting calls are becoming more common, and it seems like the calls have been coming in “sprees” across the country, which indicates the same people are responsible for many calls in a short period of time.
Last year, an 18-year-old California man was sentenced to four years in prison for making more than 375 swatting and threat calls between August 2022 and January 2024, according to the Department of Justice. His calls targeted Jewish religious institutions, high schools, colleges and universities, government officials, and individuals across the U.S. There was no legitimate reason for him to do it other than humor.
It’s unclear how the people who make these calls select targets. The goal of swatting calls seems to be creating chaos. Or humoring the caller. There are no real ramifications, nor do they care about what impact it has on the people involved. That’s a common factor in our society today: a lack of compassion, empathy, and understanding.
The people who make swatting calls often use technology to hide their geographic location and modify their voices, making it difficult for police to find perpetrators and those involved. And the emergencies described in swatting calls are usually so serious that local first responders must send all available resources. They are usually threatening active shooters and stating bombs may be in the buildings. And even if you think it’s a hoax, you just can’t risk it because there is way too much at stake if you’re wrong.
Napoleon Schools, law enforcement, and all involved did an excellent job, and I hope and pray they and no one else ever has to go through this again. If you have any leads on who did this, don’t hesitate to call the proper authorities because this could lead to something much worse in the future, and I hope they do bust this person who did this and prosecute them to the FULLEST extent of the law!