London police say charges are pending against two people from South Africa after a bizarre incident in Byron Wednesday night that involved false reports of a man with a gun.

It’s part of a global trend called “swatting,” in which false reports are submitted to police in the hopes of scaring the victims of the possibly dangerous prank.

Emergency services are deceived into responding to another person’s address by reporting false emergencies such as a bomb threat, murder or hostage-taking.

Police received a call from a man at about 5:45 p.m. that a man with a rifle was at the door of his home. The caller gave police his address in Byron.

Multiple officers rushed to the scene and set up a perimeter. Streets around the home were closed for about an hour while police investigated.

Police scoured the area and home, but found nothing.

No one who lived on the street where police were dispatched saw a man with a gun.

A witness said there were at least seven police cruisers and officers ducking behind their vehicles with guns drawn.

London police received more calls from the same phone number after the incident.

Police say the calls were made from people who live in South Africa and are known to the homeowner.

Officers have identified the callers and say public mischief charges are pending against a 53-year-old man and a 16-year-old male.

“It looks that in this case it was personal, not random,” said Paul Whitehead, a retired Western University sociology professor with a specialty in criminology.

Whitehead called it a “seriously mischievous” prank. It’s a consequence of living in a global village where wrongdoers can look up phone numbers and addresses on the internet half a world away.

“If people can change the temperature in your house remotely,” then it’s not hard to get basic information online, he added.

And there’s not much police can do, but show up and see if the reports are genuine, Whitehead said.

“Of course, the 911 operator tries to get confirming information from the caller,” Whitehead explained. He worries about the reports distracting officers from other serious situations.

“That’s a terrible waste of good effort,” he said.

In a statement Thursday, police said the false report “created an unnecessary risk to public safety.”

The incident, known as “swatting,” involves deceiving emergency services into responding to another person’s address by reporting false emergencies.

Anyone with information should call the London police at (519) 661-5670 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

danbrown@postmedia.com

jbieman@postmedia.com