{
  "id": "2023-04-03-harvard-university-swatting",
  "slug": "harvard-university-swatting-2023-04-03",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Harvard University",
    "shortName": "Harvard",
    "state": "MA",
    "type": "private-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "MessageMe",
    "enrollment": 23000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2023-04-03",
    "type": "swatting",
    "cleryCategory": "advisory",
    "resolution": "confirmed-hoax",
    "headline": "Swatting hoax draws armed police to a residence suite; students ordered out at gunpoint",
    "headlinePublic": "Swatting hoax draws armed police to a residence suite; students ordered out at gunpoint",
    "summary": "On April 3, 2023, [four Black Harvard seniors](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/4/lev-swatting-attack/) (Jazmin Dunlap, Alexandra Rene, David Madzivanyika, and Jarah Cotton) were ordered out of their Leverett House suite at gunpoint by HUPD officers responding to a swatting hoax. The caller falsely claimed to be a former student who had taken a hostage and was armed. The incident sparked a [letter signed by 45 Black student organizations](https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2023/04/21/letter-black-student-organizations-condemn-harvard-swatting-response/) demanding institutional reform.",
    "outcome": "No injuries occurred but four Black students were traumatized after being held at gunpoint in their own suite. HUPD confirmed the swatting hoax and engaged the FBI. The Harvard Black Alumni Society and 45 Black student organizations demanded changes to HUPD protocol. President Bacow met with Black student leaders.",
    "casualties": {
      "killed": 0,
      "injured": 0
    }
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "follow-up",
      "timestampApprox": "Approximately 10:20 AM EDT on April 3, 2023, after the raid (which occurred at approximately 4:15 AM EDT) had been completed",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "The responding team arrived within minutes and was able to quickly clear the scene. HUPD confirms that there is no active or immediate threat to our House community.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/4/lev-swatting-attack/",
      "sourceDescription": "Email from Leverett House deans to residents at 10:20 AM EDT, quoted in The Harvard Crimson",
      "annotations": [
        "This message was sent only AFTER the raid had concluded; Harvard issued NO real-time emergency alert during the active incident",
        "The deans' message did not mention that armed officers had pointed long guns at four Black students in their suite",
        "The lack of detail in the dean's email became a flashpoint for student criticism of Harvard's communication"
      ],
      "characterCount": 165
    }
  ],
  "context": "In the early morning hours of April 3, 2023, [four Black Harvard College seniors](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/4/lev-swatting-attack/) (Jarah Cotton, Jazmin Dunlap, David Madzivanyika, and Alexandra René) awoke to banging on their Leverett House suite door. Within seconds, [Harvard University Police Department officers ordered them into the hallway at gunpoint](https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/04/03/metro/they-had-guns-pointed-us-harvard-university-police-responding-hoax-emergency-call-order-students-suite-early-monday/), with at least five armed officers and what students described as long guns. HUPD had received [three escalating swatting calls within an hour](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/6/clay-leverett-swatting-statement/) from a caller claiming to be a former Harvard student who had taken a hostage and was armed. The caller specifically named the suite. After clearing the room, officers found no hostage and no weapon. Rather than issuing a real-time emergency alert, Harvard waited until the raid was over before sending Leverett residents a brief email at 10:20 AM EDT. The incident sparked outrage among Black students and alumni: [45 Black student organizations signed an open letter](https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2023/04/21/letter-black-student-organizations-condemn-harvard-swatting-response/) demanding HUPD reform, and the [Harvard Black Alumni Society](https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2023/04/05/harvard-black-alumni-society-outraged-at-swatting-incident/) issued a public condemnation. President Lawrence Bacow [met with Black student leaders](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/25/lev-swatting-bacow-response/) in response. HUPD Chief Victor Clay later said he '[100% backed](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/5/10/clay-interview-swatting-attack/)' student demands for reform. The incident became a national reference point for how swatting attacks disproportionately endanger students of color who fit a profile police treat as more threatening.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "Four Black Harvard seniors were held at gunpoint in their own suite by HUPD responding to a swatting hoax",
    "Harvard issued no real-time emergency alert during the active raid; the only campus communication came AFTER the incident concluded",
    "The Leverett House dean's email did not mention that armed officers had pointed long guns at students",
    "45 Black student organizations signed an open letter demanding HUPD reforms in response",
    "The incident became a national reference point for how swatting disproportionately endangers students of color",
    "HUPD Chief Victor Clay publicly endorsed student reform demands six weeks after the incident"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Four Harvard Students Held at Gunpoint by Campus Police in 'Swatting' Attack (Harvard Crimson)",
      "url": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/4/lev-swatting-attack/",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "Harvard Police Chief Makes First Public Statement on 'Swatting' Attack (Harvard Crimson)",
      "url": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/6/clay-leverett-swatting-statement/",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "'They had guns pointed at us': Students recall fear, confusion as Harvard police responded (Boston Globe)",
      "url": "https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/04/03/metro/they-had-guns-pointed-us-harvard-university-police-responding-hoax-emergency-call-order-students-suite-early-monday/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Harvard Black Alumni Society outraged at swatting incident (Boston.com)",
      "url": "https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2023/04/05/harvard-black-alumni-society-outraged-at-swatting-incident/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Dozens of Black Harvard Groups Demand University Action After Leverett Swatting (Harvard Crimson)",
      "url": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/4/20/swatting-incident-student-letter/",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    },
    {
      "title": "Harvard Police Chief '100%' Backs Student and Alumni Demands After Leverett Swatting (Harvard Crimson)",
      "url": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/5/10/clay-interview-swatting-attack/",
      "type": "student-newspaper"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "medium",
  "tags": [
    "swatting",
    "harvard",
    "leverett-house",
    "massachusetts",
    "racial-targeting",
    "hupd",
    "april-2023-swatting-wave",
    "long-guns",
    "no-real-time-alert",
    "student-protest",
    "fbi-investigation"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-03",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-16",
  "addedBy": "ingestion",
  "communityResponse": {
    "sentiment": "mixed",
    "summary": "The alerting decision was directly contested: HUPD Chief Victor Clay called it a tactical choice not to send a MessageMe alert at 3 a.m. on April 3, 2023, while an affected student argued the armed response itself [\"most definitely warrants an email\"](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/5/10/clay-interview-swatting-attack/).",
    "quotes": [
      {
        "text": "They clearly, again, thought it was a serious threat because they had assault rifles pointed at our faces. I feel like if it warrants that kind of response, it most definitely warrants an email.",
        "speaker": "Jarah K. Cotton '23, affected student",
        "source": "The Harvard Crimson",
        "sourceUrl": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/5/10/clay-interview-swatting-attack/",
        "sourceType": "student-newspaper",
        "isVerbatimConfirmed": false
      },
      {
        "text": "to send out an alert at three o'clock in the morning may have brought more people into the problem",
        "speaker": "Victor A. Clay, HUPD Police Chief",
        "source": "The Harvard Crimson",
        "sourceUrl": "https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2023/5/10/clay-interview-swatting-attack/",
        "sourceType": "student-newspaper",
        "isVerbatimConfirmed": false
      }
    ],
    "confidence": "medium"
  }
}