Serial prankster arrested in 'swatting' trick that led to fatal police shooting of unarmed Kansas man

nydailynews.com - An alleged serial "prankster" from California has been arrested over a fake 911 call that resulted in police fatally shooting an unarmed Kansas man earlier this week, officials said.

Tyler Barriss — a 25-year-old gamer suspected of making the false police report that led to the death of Wichita resident Andrew Finch — was cuffed by Los Angeles cops late Friday. The catastrophic prank Barriss carried out, known as "swatting," has gained traction in online gaming communities and typically involves a person making up a story about an ongoing violent crime to trigger a massive police response.

Finch was gunned down on Thursday night after cops believe Barriss told a 911 dispatcher that he had shot his father and was holding his mother and younger brother hostage.

"I shot him in the head and he's not breathing anymore," Barriss said, according to a recording of the call released by the Wichita Police Department.

Barriss then added, "I might just pour gasoline all over the house, I might just set it on fire."

Barriss gave cops Finch's address, mistakenly believing it belonged to a person he had feuded with over a $1 or $2 Call of Duty wager.

"Due to the actions of a prankster we have an innocent victim," Wichita deputy police chief Troy Livingston said during a press conference Friday night.

Barriss' unnerving 911 call set cops rushing to Finch's house, expecting an ongoing hostage situation. Instead, an unarmed and unsuspecting Finch came to the front door.

Officers screamed at Finch to put his hands in the air, but Livingston said the 28-year-old father of two young boys moved a hand toward his waistband. An officer, fearing Finch was reaching for a gun, fired a single shot. Finch died minutes later.

A series of since-deleted Twitter posts screen-grabbed by the Wichita Eagle suggest that the targeted Call of Duty gamer gave Barriss a fake address that — seemingly by complete happenstance — turned out to be Finch's. (ontinueReading