Police, fire and rescue squads swarmed Miley Cyrus' home after a 911 call said shots were fired during a home invasion and kidnapping, only to discover it was all an elaborate hoax. INSIDE EDITION has the scoop.
A wild scene was outside Miley Cyrus' home. Cops swarmed the place as a swat team moved in with guns drawn. But get this; it was all because of a terrible hoax.
One of the cops at the scene told reporters, "We responded to the residence and no one was home. We believe it's a prank call at this time."
Cyrus is the latest victim of a disturbing trend called "swatting," where a prankster calls 911 to trick cops into sending a swat team racing to someone's home. Sometimes it's the home of a celebrity they don't like.
Cyrus lives in the hills above Los Angeles. Just before 7 P.M. Wednesday night, a 911 dispatcher got a call saying there was a home invasion underway at Cyrus' mansion with shots being fired and a hostage being held inside. Cops, ambulances, and fire and rescue sped to the scene.
You could hear emergency workers reacting with shock when they learned whose house it was.
"Who's house is this?" asked one emergency responder.
"It's Miley Cyrus'!" another replied.
They were all there to rescue the 19-year-old teen idol from a possible hostage situation.
But Cyrus wasn't home at the time. In fact, she was 3,000 miles away in Philadelphia with her fiancé Liam Hemsworth on the set of his new movie.
Cyrus' neighbors say they are sickened to learn it was all a very stupid and reckless prank.
One neighbor told INSIDE EDITION, "I think it's horrible. It incites fear into people living in the area. It also incites more fear into the people it's affecting."
It's called swatting, and the targets seem to be celebrities, many of whom are conservative radio personalities.
Erick Erickson, who hosts a local radio show in Atlanta, is one of the victims of the cruel hoax.
Someone called 911 and told the dispatcher, "I just shot my wife."
The dispatcher responded, "You just shot your wife?"
"I guess you're going to have to find out. I'm going to shoot someone else soon," said the caller.
The caller said he was Erickson, but he wasn't.
Cops say the dangerous trend of swatting is spreading, with hundreds of cases happening every year.
