'Damn Daniel:' The viral video we can't stop watching

Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Teen who posted viral 'Damn Daniel' video victim of swatting
The teenager who filmed the viral 'Damn Daniel' video and posted the clip on Twitter was the victim of a bogus emergency call that prompted police to swarm his family's Riverside home.

Have you seen this video yet?





It features a series of Snapchat clips pieced together with a boy in the background saying, "Damn Daniel."



The boy in the video is Daniel Lara. His friend Josh is the one saying, "damn Daniel" behind the camera in every shot. It's funny the first time, but it's laugh-out-loud hilarious by tenth time when Josh adds "Daaaamn, Daniel! Back at it again with the white Vans!"



Josh uploaded the video on Twitter February 15. It has been retweeted more than 290,000 times and liked more than 370,000 times.



The video is now the source of several parodies and memes.











Someone turned it into a song on SoundCloud.





It inspired this dance routine:







Teen who posted video becomes victim of swatting



The teenager who filmed the viral "Damn Daniel" video and posted the clip on Twitter was the victim of a bogus emergency call that prompted police to swarm his family's Riverside, Calif., home.



Police responded around 1 a.m. Tuesday after they received reports that someone at a residence on Hamilton Drive had shot their mother with an AK-47.



The family cooperated with authorities, at which point police searched the home, cleared the scene and determined it was a false report.



"Swatting" refers to a prank in which someone convinces authorities to dispatch an emergency response for a fake incident. Many celebrities have been victims of swatting, including Lil Wayne, Justin Timberlake and Miley Cyrus.



Riverside police Lt. Kevin Townsend said they've responded to a few swatting incidents that are usually spurred by revenge.



"They tend to be, for us, revenge in some way. Once we're able to track down who made the call, it's someone trying to get back at someone, whether it be an ex or something like that but that's what it seems like -- exes or teenagers," Townsend said. "We believe and the family believes that since their video went viral, it's somehow connected. Ever since their video has gone out there, they've received a number of what they call strange phone calls and emails, and a lot of strange things happening so tonight was just another incident for their family."



Making a hoax call to police is a misdemeanor that can carry a sentence of up to a year in prison. The investigation is ongoing.