Playing pranks on people is nothing new–there are even TV shows dedicated to the art–but one particular type of prank called swatting is causing law enforcement a lot of trouble.

Swatting is a type of joke where the prankster tricks the police or other emergency services into going to a residence when nothing is really wrong.  The term originates from SWAT teams showing up and raiding a home because someone made a false report of a hostage situation.  Celebrities are being targeted with these swatting pranks and singer Rihanna is one of the most recent victims.

On April 4, someone called the cops and said that two men shot had shot someone and provided Rihanna’s Los Angeles address.  When the police arrived, they discovered that the call was a hoax.  Rihanna was promoting her new album on her Diamonds World Tour when the call was made.

This type of prank is particularly frustrating for the police as such pranks not only waste valuable time and resources, they also keep officers from being able to patrol and prevent crimes.  “We take all these calls seriously,” LAPD spokesman Bruce Borihanh said, who promised to catch and prosecute the prankster.

If the prankster is caught, he will face charges, which could be very serious depending on exactly what was said when he placed the 911 call.  Currently a 12-year-old boy is facing multiple charges for swatting pranks he played last October.  The pre-teen swatted Ashton Kutcher and Justin Bieber’s homes and has been charged with making false bomb threats and computer intrusion, both of which are felonies.  While police haven’t revealed the cost of the Rihanna swatting incident, it cost Los Angeles more than $10,000 in manpower and resources when Kutcher’s home was swatted.

Other celebrities swatted recently include P. Diddy, who was swatted on Wednesday.  More than a dozen police officers showed up at the rapper’s house.  Rihanna’s on-again/off-again boyfriend Chris Brown was also swatted when someone made a false report of domestic violence.  The hoax calls are hard to trace, so none of the pranksters have been caught.

So far none of the prank calls have caused harm to any of the celebrities, but it could only be a matter of time before someone is injured.  California legislators are so concerned about the deadly potential of swatting that they are trying to introduce stricter punishments for pranksters caught making such calls, including a fine of up to $10,000.