Slain teen's family hit with more sick threats after ultimate insult at press conference for his 'killer'
By
JAMES CIRRONE FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
Published: 20:43 EDT, 18 April 2025 | Updated: 20:45 EDT, 18 April 2025
The family of
Texas high schooler Austin Metcalf, who was
fatally stabbed at a track meet this month, was swatted by vicious pranksters on Thursday.
Officers responded to a fabricated report of shooting at an address that turned out to be the home Metcalf's dad Jeff, who only hours earlier had delivered the ultimate insult to the accused killer's family by showing up to a press conference they held.
Jeff told
WFAA that no one was at home when police arrived. He got to the scene five minutes later.
Swatting involves people calling in fake threats to the authorities just to scare their victim by having police bust down their doors. There have been two reported cases of people dying as a result of swatting incidents.
Police also said individuals swatted the home of Meghan Metcalf, Austin Metcalf's mother, on the night of April 8.
This comes as 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony, who is accused of killing Metcalf,
was released from jail earlier this week after a judge controversially decided to lower his bond from $1 million to $250,000.
Before Jeff's home was swatted, he crashed a press conference where Anthony's family and friends doubled down on the claim that Anthony may have acted in self-defense.
After refusing to leave, cops tossed Jeff out of the event in Dallas, with Minister Dominique Alexander, who has been described as Anthony's fixer, calling the grieving father's behavior 'inappropriate,' and 'a disrespect to the dignity of his son.'
Jeff Metcalf, father of the late Austin Metcalf, was swatted on Thursday, police confirmed (Pictured: The two are pictured together at one of Austin's high school football games)
The swatting comes as Karmelo Anthony, the accused killer of Austin Metcalf, has been released on bond
Metcalf died on April 2 after he got into an argument with Anthony at a track meet in Frisco, which is just north of Dallas.
The two boys were both star athletes from opposing schools, with Metcalf attending Memorial High School as a junior and Anthony going to Centennial High as a senior.
Witnesses told police that Anthony for some reason migrated over to the Memorial High School pop-up tent, according to an arrest affidavit. When he was told to leave by Metcalf, that's when things went bad.
Anthony unzipped his bag and reached in, telling Metcalf:
'Touch me and see what happens,' a witness told police.
The affidavit says Metcalf then 'grabbed Anthony to tell him to move and Anthony pulled out ... a black knife and stabbed Austin once in the chest.'
Metcalf collapsed and died in the arms of his twin brother, Hunter. Meanwhile, Anthony is said to have fled the scene and tossed the knife into the bleachers.
He was arrested shortly after and responding officers said Anthony told them he was 'protecting myself' and that Metcalf had 'put his hands on me.'
Anthony also told officers,
'I’m not the alleged, I did it,’ according to the affidavit.
'We have not received a single dime from the GiveSendGo fundraiser.... we were just notified yesterday that we could begin to withdraw funds and it still takes several days to receive those funds once the request is made,' Anthony's mother Angela Hayes said
The horrific killing at the track meet has divided the community and nation at large, with Anthony's family claiming they have been left too afraid to leave their home over racist attacks.
Meanwhile, others are outraged that Anthony's family has been able to raise upwards of $480,000 on crowd-funding site GiveSendGo to support his legal defense.
Alexander, the minister who has taken center-stage defending Anthony in the court of public opinion, said at the press conference Thursday that he took issue with the media's coverage of the donation page.
Anthony's mother Angela Hayes said they 'have not received
a single dime from the GiveSendGo fundraiser.'
'We were just notified yesterday that we could begin to withdraw funds and it still takes several days to receive those funds once the request is made,' Hayes added.
Alexander also claimed the family could not leave their home after their address was leaked online, leading to 'graphic and racist threats,' which included images of 'black children with knives stuck in their head.'
The Anthony family said they would use some of the donated funds to relocate and hire security.
Anthony lives in an ritzy gated community, Richwoods, in Frisco. Pictured is the $900,000 house he'll spending his home arrest at while awaiting trial
Anthony's attorney Michael Howard said, regarding the money: 'It would be disingenuous to say there isn’t money... But it is not a bond fund. This family needs to be able to survive.'
'Every Texan has a right to defend themselves when they reasonably fear for their life. Self-defense is a protection that applies to each and every one of us,' Howard said. 'There are two sides to every story.'
Howard said he is not ready to disclose why Anthony brought a knife to the track match.
As part of the terms of his conditional release, Anthony is under house arrest and must wear an ankle monitor.
Anthony's family has been renting a $900,000 home in the gated community 'Richwoods' in Frisco.
When DailyMail.com visited the home Tuesday, a white Suburban, a black Acura and a third sedan were parked in the driveway.
One resident told DailyMail.com the family just purchased a new vehicle.
'He got a new car. If you look at the license plate, it's got a paper tag and it says it expires June 4,' the resident, who asked to remain anonymous, shared.
The lavish lifestyle is in stark contract to the cash struggles Anthony's father, Andrew Anthony, claimed to have in court Monday, where the parent claimed he was the sole breadwinner.
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