Suspect in SWATing Incident To Plead Guilty

A notorious Massachusetts computer hacker has agreed to plead guilty again to federal charges that he telephoned public safety comm centers around the country and made threats that he had explosives, VX nerve gas and was holding hostages. Nathan Hanshaw, 22, was charged by the Boston’s U.S. Attorney last Friday in connection with SWATing calls to Colorado, New York and California that led to the dispatching of heavily-armed police. The calls were placed during the period of Sept. 2012 to Jan. 2013. The practice of SWATing has become more common over the last year, but has primarily focused on celebrity homes on the west coast. In this case, Hanshaw faces up to 15 years in prison on all three charges. The criminal information (pdf) charges him with making interstate threats, threats to use explosives, and threats to use a firearm. Typically, Hanshaw would allegedly claim he was an FBI and Marshal’s Service fugitive. A Department of Justice (DOJ) press release said Hanshaw also, “demanded cash and a helicopter ride to Mexico and threatened to detonate his bombs and kill his hostages if his demands were not met.” The DOJ did not say how Hanshaw made the calls or what telephone number he dialed to reach the comm centers. However, they did say he would spoof (falsify) his address information so the call appeared to be the address of his SWATing victim. Hanshaw has previously served time in jail for SWATing. In 2008 he was arrested as a juvenile for breaking into corporate computers and for making SWATing calls. He faced up to 10 years in prison if the U.S. Attorney had tried him as an adult. However, he was charged as a juvenile, and agreed to serve 11 months in a juvenile detention facility. He was released in early 2010. Listen to one of Hanshaw’s SWATing calls here (profanity).

Strangely, the DOJ press release does not explain procedurally how Hanshaw was charged and agreed to plead guilty on the same day, August 9, 2013. It does not mention if he has been arrested, if he’s being held in jail or if he posted bail. No future court date was mentioned in the release.

The criminal information stated that upon conviction, Hanshaw would forfeit any real or personal property that is derived from proceeds that can be traced to his offenses. If any of that property has been disposed of, other unrelated property can be seized in its place, the information said.