Famous streamer Kai Cenat says he's the victim of yet another swatting call
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 07: Kai Cenat attends TwitchCon 2022 on October 07, 2022 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Robin L Marshall/Getty Images)
Kai Cenat, a famous social media personality from New York who built his career through live streaming on Twitch, claims he has fallen victim to yet another swatting scheme.
He posted a photo of police at the "Mafiathon" mansion on X, saying, "Getting swatted smh [shaking my head] hold tight gotta be outside."
In the comment section of that post, one of his followers posted what appeared to be Kai on live stream reacting to news that a helicopter was circling his home.
FOX 5 Atlanta has reached out to local officials to independently verify his claim and is still awaiting an answer. However, this would not be the first time the 22-year-old multi-millionaire was the target of swatting.
In November 2022, Kai was also streaming when he received a phone call that caused him to get up immediately, saying, "Emergency. Emergency. Be right back."
When he returned to his computer, he appeared to be distraught.
"Six in the morning is crazy, bro. Yes, swatted, bro," he said, answering his subscribers who were communicating with him through a live chat. "I appreciate them for being as calm as possible, bro, but six in the morning is [sic] crazy. Y'all got it, bro. Y'all won, bro."
What is a swatting call?
Swatting is a type of prank where someone falsely reports a serious emergency, such as a bomb threat, murder, or hostage situation, and directs law enforcement or emergency services, particularly a SWAT team, toward a particular address. This is done to distress or harm the individual at the given address, who is unaware of the false report.
It is extremely dangerous and potentially leads to property damage, injury, or even death, as well as wasted police resources.
Georgia Swatting Law
In Georgia, swatting is a serious crime. A perpetrator making phony calls from the Peach State could face the following repercussions:
On July 1, 2024, Georgia Senate Bill 421 went into effect, increasing punishment for those behind the false alarms. It is a legal requirement in the state of Georgia for perpetrators to pay any damages caused by their actions.
In Kai's 2024 case, he claimed Twitch banned his account in the middle of his stream.
About 14 minutes later, he posted again inviting his fans to come back, saying that he was "unbanned." It's not clear how much money he makes per live stream or how much he would have lost in the time he was offline.
The new law also made first offenses a felony if they're aimed at a dwelling or place of worship. The measure also increased the felony penalty for second offenses, making the minimum prison sentence five years, instead of one year. It also added stronger penalties for a third offense, requiring a sentence of 10 to 15 years.