Hmmm... tracking down the dude as he flew across the country seems outside the scope of a prankster.

Well, now I'm neutral on the subject. There's details that make me disbelieve the story. But tracking down the author and finding the right phone number to call him seems like a feat that would require decent resources.

Basically: that's a level of effort that goes well above and beyond a typical prank call.

Agree -- there are too many dissonant pieces to this story. I guess it could be true, it just doesn't make a lot of sense.