Apparent hoax call of shooting at SW Bend home brings out major police presence, closes streets

(Update: Adding video, area resident comments)

Neighbors evacuated before officers enter home, find no sign of any crime

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A caller to Deschutes County dispatchers claimed to have shot someone at a home in southwest Bend Tuesday, prompting a major police presence, the closure of several area streets and evacuation of nearby homes -- but when officers entered the home, they found no sign of any crime.

The incident that disrupted lunch-hour activities and prompted widespread worry and questions brought echoes of a so-called “swatting” case two months ago, when a caller later traced overseas falsely claimed someone was waiting in the Bend High School parking lot and was going to bring a gun or guns into the school.

Deschutes County 911 dispatch got a call on the non-emergency line around 12:17 p.m. Tuesday from a man who reported he had shot someone at a home in 100 block of Southwest Taft Avenue -- and was still inside the home, Bend Police Communications Manager Sheila Miller said.

“Because of the nature of the call, a large police presence responded,” Miller said, including armored vehicles and personnel from the Central Oregon Emergency Response Team (CERT) and the sheriff’s office Special Operations Team.

Police negotiators were able to speak on the phone with the caller for several minutes, Miller said.

Negotiators were called to the scene and an officer could be heard on a loudspeaker, calling for whoever was inside to come out of the house.

"We hailed to make sure nobody was in there, and nobody came out," Miller said.

Law enforcement also had medics staged in the area, and Miller said officers evacuated immediate neighbors of the home in question.

Meanwhile, investigators contacted the homeowners, who were away at the time, and got their permission to enter and clear the home, where Miller said they “found no evidence of a crime.”

“It does appear there was no crime at the scene” of the unoccupied home, she said.

A criminal investigation into the origin of the call is ongoing, she said, and could lead to charges such as misuse of 911 and disorderly conduct, among others.

"We have investigators who can do all kinds of magical things to determine where the call came from," Miller added.

Streets closed for a time around the area included Wilson Avenue and Silver Lake Boulevard beyond Roosevelt Avenue, Miller said.

Bend resident Susan Richman said, I'm hoping that they can trace it (the call), because I think that's a terrible use of waste of the police officers and the SWAT team.”

No text or phone alerts were sent out to area residents due to the fast-changing, fluid nature of the situation, which took about an hour to resolve, Miller explained.

“We really appreciate the patience of neighbors,” Miller said, some of whom had to wait at roadblocks or away from their homes or businesses while police assured the scene was safe and secure.

No schools were placed in “secure” status during Tuesday’s incident, Bend-La Pine Schools Director of Communications Scott Maben said.

Along with the sheriff's office, Bend Police thanked Oregon State Police, Redmond Police and Bend Fire & Rescue for their assistance.