Buttigieg says false abuse report separated him from twins overnight

Pete Buttigieg said a false abuse report forced him to spend about 24 hours away from his 4-year-old twins in Traverse City, Michigan, after Child Protective Services and Michigan State Police responded to an anonymous call that accused him of posing a danger to his children. Buttigieg described the episode as one of “the darkest hours” of his life and “the ugliest thing” to happen since he began public service.

In a June 26 Substack post, Buttigieg said a police officer and a CPS worker came to his home a few days earlier and told him he was not to be alone with the children until a forensic interview was completed the next day. The twins were taken to their grandparents’ home overnight, then later interviewed by trained personnel. Buttigieg said the anonymous caller falsely claimed he had confessed to “unspeakable violent crimes” during a meeting years earlier at a conference in Alabama, a claim he said was easily disproved because he had never been to the town in question.

Michigan State Police said they received an anonymous report and, together with Child Protective Services, determined it was false. State police spokesperson Shanon Banner said false reports are dangerous because they divert resources from legitimate emergencies. Buttigieg said the officer told him the case appeared politically motivated and would not be referred to a prosecutor, though the formal case would take a bit longer to close.

The episode landed in the middle of a broader debate over swatting-style harassment, where false emergency claims are used to terrorize public figures and force a rapid law-enforcement response. Buttigieg said the incident fit that pattern, noting that false reports of imminent danger have become increasingly common against political and public figures. In this case, the cost was immediate and personal: a father separated from his young children while authorities sorted fact from fabrication.

Buttigieg and his husband, Chasten, adopted the twins in 2021. He said the ordeal left both of them shocked and angry, underscoring how quickly a single anonymous call can pull police, child welfare workers and a family into a disruptive investigation before the lie is uncovered.