18-year-old Ohio man, member of alleged online swatting group, arrested

COLUMBUS — An 18-year-old Columbus man who was wanted by the FBI is in custody.

Brayden Grace was wanted for his alleged involvement in “conspiring to place, and causing to be placed, swatting calls to multiple police and emergency departments across the country,” according to the FBI.

Grace was taken into custody in Columbus Thursday, according to a spokesperson for the FBI.

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Grace, who also has ties to Lima, was allegedly part of an online group that used multiple online social media platforms to coordinate and plan the swatting activities.

The alleged calls happened between December 2023 to at least January 2024.

“Among the alleged swatting incidents are a threat to burn down a residential trailer park in Alabama; a shooting threat against a teacher and unnamed students at a high school in Delaware; a shooting and bomb threat to the Albany International Airport in New York; a shooting and bomb threat against a casino in Ohio; and a multiple homicide event and shooting threat against individuals in a residence in Eastman, Georgia,” according to the FBI.

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