According to multiple reports someone ‘swatted’ Nicki Minaj and her husband at their LA home.
According to The NY Post the anonymous caller had notified child services that Minaj’s 2-year-old son was being abused which led to sheriff’s deputies showing up at the rapper’s L.A. house, a law enforcement source told TMZ.
Law enforcement officials spoke with Minaj and her husband, Kenneth Petty, at the scene, and after examining the child, who showed no signs of abuse, determined it was just a “swatting” prank.
Hours later, another caller phoned into 911 dispatch and alerted that Minaj’s house was on fire, TMZ also reported.
The fire was quickly realized as another swatting attempt, leading Minaj to reportedly hiring a lawyer to hold responsible the people behind the pranks.
“Swatting” is the act of calling law enforcement or reporting a crime or emergency so a large police response, or even a S.W.A.T. team, shows up at a specific location.
Officials have repeatedly warned people not to “swat” as it wastes time and resources that could be used for better purposes.
Politicians, celebrities and influencers have all been victims of “swatting” pranks, which have sometimes turned deadly, as in the death of a father, after a serial prankster called the cops after a fight over a bet while playing the video game “Call of Duty.”
Former White House advisor Steve Bannon, and US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene have both been “swatted” multiple times in the past year, with the Republican congresswoman having been a victim of the prank at least six times.
