Kotaku: Cops

Wired Controllers Blamed in Attempted Murder

Owen Good — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 23:00:00 EST

Cops in a northeastern Pennsylvania community booked a man on attempted murder charges, saying he tried to strangle his wife with "a video game cord." Either he was playing with wired console controllers from a generation ago, or the guy went and grabbed the Xbox 360 brick to choke his spouse. More »

Second Time's the Charm, or at Least a Trend, in Xbox Live SWAT Griefing

Owen Good — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 20:30:00 EDT

Instead of bogus pizza deliveries, sending a SWAT team to your door appears to be the hip new griefing trend in online gaming. Earlier this month we told you about a gamer in Eugene, Ore. who answered the doorbell to a police raid, thanks to some douchebag he met in FortressCraft. Now it's happened to someone in Florida. More »

Cops Tase Man with PS2 Tucked In His Pants

Owen Good — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 23:30:00 EDT

Cops trying to get a man to stop walking in traffic had a tougher time convincing him when they found out the dude was strapped—with a PS2. More »

Pokémon Suspect, Cops Arrest You!

Brian Ashcraft — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 08:00:00 EST

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Japanese cyber cops are cracking down big time on individuals who are breaking copyright law. And if you break he law, you just might end up on prime time news. More »

This Guy Wants His Video Game Back

Owen Good — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 22:00:00 EST

But first he has to put on some makeup. With a Sharpie. And then find his sword. More »

Drug Dealer Gets Three Years In Wii Bowling Case

Owen Good — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 01:00:00 EDT

A Florida man whose home was notoriously raided by undercover detectives who stopped to play Wii bowling has agreed to a plea bargain that will send him to prison for three years. More »

Stolen Console Leads Cops To Meth Surprise

Owen Good — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 15:00:00 EDT

A Florida woman swiped and pawned her roommate's console, and when the cops came over to ask questions, they noticed a "large white chemical cloud" wafting out of the house. Better living through chemistry! More »

Kid Bribed With Video Games To Steal Drugs, Say Cops

Owen Good — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 20:30:00 EDT

Kids, if someone promises you a video game! if you let them borrow a bottle of mom's pills without telling mom, that's bigtime STRANGER DANGER and you need to tell McGruff the Crime Dog. More »

The Case of the Indie Devs and the Medical Marijuana Mixup

Owen Good — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 15:00:00 EST

IllFonic, the Denver-based developer of Ghetto Golf, happens to have a medical marijuana dispensary for a next-door neighbor. Last night its alarm went off, the fuzz showed up at the wrong address, and three devs were cuffed at gunpoint. More »

Stolen Video Games Help Catch a Predator

Owen Good — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 18:20:00 EST

A Delaware man is looking at some time in the slammer for failing to register himself as a sex offender, and he would have gotten away with it if it weren't for those meddling video games. More »

Stolen 360 Helps Cops Bag Prolific Bronx Burglar

Owen Good — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 18:00:00 EST

Jeremiah Gilliam's streak of 200-plus larcenies and burglaries came to an end when the criminal mastermind plugged in a jacked Xbox Live, leading the cops directly to his door. More »

Mom Calls 911 When Kid Won't Stop Playing Console

Owen Good — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 22:00:00 EST

In Chicago last month, a kid called 911 when the 'rents took away his Xbox 360. Saturday in a Boston suburb a mom dialed the law when her son wouldn't stop playing. Oh yeah, Grand Theft Auto's involved here, too. More »

Detroit Shopper Gets Cray-Cray When He Can't Return a Console

Owen Good — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:40:00 EST

The ancient Chinese curse reads, "May you live in interesting times." So when a GameStopper says "It was an interesting day here," you know he's not talking about big sales. More »

Wii-Bowling Drug Cops Get Off Lite

Owen Good — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:40:00 EST

A-member them law enforcement perfesshunals down in Florida who killed time on a raid by bowling up big scores on a drug kingpin's Wii? Well, 11 of them got sanctioned for their conduct, but not too hard, now. More »

Cops Play Wii During Undercover Drug Raid

Owen Good — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 10:00:00 EDT

Guns drawn, cops busted down the door of a suspected south Florida drug dealer, then proceeded to kick some ass - on Wii bowling. A security cam captured some playing video games while others searched for drugs and weapons. More »

When There's Nothing to Blame, There's Always Games

Owen Good — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 16:00:00 EDT

Last October, Stefan Martin-Urban shot up a suburban cul-de-sac, killing two people and then himself. Investigators found no drugs, no journals explaining his motives. But they did find video games, and so that's the answer. More »

Mii Sought in Hit and Run

Owen Good — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 15:00:00 EST

Calling all cars: Be on lookout for this Mii in connection with a hit and run. Driver last seen in Moo Moo Meadows wearing Mii Outfit B. Suspect is believed to have unlimited blue shells. More »

Great Dane Gaming Mobilizes SWAT Team

Owen Good — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 15:00:00 EST

We've heard of this in the States before, but if you game super loud in Denmark, especially in shooters with loud bang-bang noises, someone might sic a police strike force on you too. More »

Cop Pulls Over Driver, Seizes Xbox

Stuart Houghton — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:20:00 EST

Questions are being asked in Orange Country, Florida after a Sheriff's Deputy apparently confiscated a man's Xbox 360 in lieu of a speeding fine. I Am Not A Lawyer, and my knowledge of Florida traffic law is pretty minimal, but isn't this a bit... unorthodox? Orange County deputies seized Kenyatta Hillman's Xbox and 8 games after stopping him for speeding and allegedly smelling marijuana in his car. Although a serial number check did not reveal the Xbox as being stolen, a deputy took the console anyway, telling Hillman that he wanted to make sure that nobody stole it(!) When Hillman tried to claim his console back, the sheriff's office were unable to locate either the Xbox or the games. A spokesman later confirmed that the console would be returned 'On Friday'. After they finish Left 4 Dead, presumably. Deputy Takes Man's xBox During Traffic Stop [WF TV 9] More »

Video Games Blamed in Fiery Motorcycle Crash

Owen Good — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 12:00:00 EDT

Some idiot in Utah wrecked his so-called "bullet bike" into an SUV carrying a family of four. Everyone's alive, including the no-shirt, no-helmet cyclist, but of course vidja games are the cause. I swear, there must be a check-block for it on police investigation forms: More »