One man is dead and a host of questions remain unanswered as police in Wichita, Kansas try to piece together what went horribly wrong. According to authorities, Andrew Finch was shot dead by SWAT team members upon answering the door to his home. A report by the New York Daily News provided most of the facts and information used in this article.

According to the report received by police, Finch had killed his father and taken his mother hostage, thus requiring the SWAT response. However, none of this was true and it was very likely that Andrew had no idea why police were even at his front door.

The Wichita Eagle was able to obtain screenshots of Twitter posts that shed some further light on the bizarre incident.

Apparently, a heated argument was waging online over a bet made by two gamers playing "Call of Duty." One user was threatening to "swat" the other if he did not pay up for the $1 to $2 bet. The address given, however, turned out to be false and what led police to the Finch residence.

What is 'Swatting?'

The term "Swatting" comes from an online video game Prank. A player or players call the police on another game player and report a violent crime, thus prompting a SWAT team to raid the targeted person's house.

The number of disastrous things that could go wrong pulling a stunt like this are many.

Aside from involving innocent people, the amount of time, money, and energy wasted by law enforcement who have to respond to a call like this is absolutely horrendous. This type of prank has gained some mainstream appeal in recent years online and it was only a matter of time until someone was going to get killed.

A simple search on Google will find numerous swatting videos.

Usually, when the intended target has his door knocked down by police, at least he understands what is happening and tries his best to not escalate the situation.

In Andrew Finch's case, he was likely caught completely off guard as he has been described as someone who doesn't even play video games. His immediate response may have been an overreaction that resulted in him being shot by the officer at the door.

It could also be the officer's fault for firing so soon, but regardless, this encounter should have never even happened.

Who is responsible?

The law is a bit murky at holding the correct people accountable for this tragedy. The officer who shot Finch is on paid leave pending an investigation. But what about the gamers who caused this?

The targeted gamer tweeted that an innocent man was dead because someone tried swatting him. He seems to be alluding that he too was a victim, despite giving the man's address. The gamer who called in the phony police report claims he too is innocent because he didn't pull the trigger and isn't on the SWAT team.

Both explanations are terrible and hopefully, some justice can be brought to the real innocent man, Andrew Finch.
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