Current:Home > ScamsNew Jersey man flew to Florida to kill fellow gamer after online dispute, police say-LoTradeCoin
New Jersey man flew to Florida to kill fellow gamer after online dispute, police say
View Date:2024-12-23 18:29:08
A New Jersey man was charged with attempted murder and burglary after investigators said he flew to Florida and assaulted a man with a hammer over a dispute stemming from a video game.
Edward Kang, 20, was arrested early Sunday morning, after investigators said he broke into the Fernandina Beach, Florida home of the victim to “confront a player he met in a video game,” Nassau County Sherriff Bill Leeper said in a press conference on Monday.
'This is a weird one'
While Kang and the victim had never met in person, sheriff's department investigators believe they were acquainted with each other through the online roleplaying video game ArcheAge.
“This is a weird one,” Leeper said on Monday.
According to arrest documents, Kang allegedly flew from New Jersey to Jacksonville, Florida on June 20, telling his mother that he was travelling to visit a friend he had met through an online video game.
Kang then allegedly broke into the victim’s home late Saturday evening or Sunday morning. When the victim got up to take a break from gaming and use the bathroom, Kang confronted him, “standing with a hammer raised in the air,” police said.
The victim was struck in the head several times and received what Leeper describes as “severe, but non-life-threatening wounds.”
The victim's stepfather was awakened by the screams for help and helped disarm and subdue Kang, Leeper said.
Suspect: 'He was a bad person online'
Sheriff’s deputies, who “observed a substantial amount of blood located near the entry way and into a bedroom,” of the house when responding, booked Kang into the Nassau County Jail, where he was charged with armed burglary and attempted second-degree murder.
According to arrest documents, when Kang was asked by the victim’s stepfather and an arresting sheriff’s deputy about a possible motive, he stated “he was a bad person online.”
ArcheAge, the game behind the alleged attempted murder, is a Korean-developed massive multiplayer online role-playing game. In April, the game’s developers announced that it would be shutting down on June 27 due to a steadily declining active user base.
Max Hauptman is a Trending Reporter for USA TODAY. He can be reached at [email protected]
veryGood! (625)
Related
- More than 150 pronghorns hit, killed on Colorado roads as animals sought shelter from snow
- How 1000-lb Sisters' Amy Slaton Addressed Rage With Ex Michael Halterman
- Thai prime minister says visa-free policy for Chinese visitors to be made permanent in March
- North Korea to launch 3 more spy satellites, Kim Jong Un says
- Colts' Kenny Moore II ridicules team's effort in loss to Bills
- Israel-Hamas war will go on for many more months, Netanyahu says
- Washington vs. Michigan: Odds and how to watch 2024 CFP National Championship
- Housing market predictions: Six experts weigh in on the real estate outlook in 2024
- John Krasinski Details Moment He Knew Wife Emily Blunt Was “the One”
- Why isn't Jayden Daniels playing in ReliaQuest Bowl? LSU QB's status vs. Wisconsin
Ranking
- John Krasinski Revealed as People's Sexiest Man Alive 2024
- Treatment for acute sleeping sickness has been brutal — until now
- Doing the Dry January challenge? This sober life coach has tips for how to succeed.
- Last-of-its-kind College Football Playoff arrives with murky future on horizon
- Disney Store's Black Friday Sale Just Started: Save an Extra 20% When You Shop Early
- How to get the most out of your library
- Anderson Cooper's Giggle Fit Steals the Show After Andy Cohen's Sex Confession on New Year's Eve
- The long-awaited FAFSA is finally here. Now, hurry up and fill it out. Here's why.
Recommendation
-
What is ‘Doge’? Explaining the meme and cryptocurrency after Elon Musk's appointment to D.O.G.E.
-
Hong Kong activist publisher Jimmy Lai pleads not guilty to sedition and collusion charges
-
Best animal photos of 2023 by USA TODAY photographers: From a 'zonkey' to a sea cucumber
-
Bachelor Nation's Kaitlyn Bristowe Denies Cheating on Jason Tartick After Being Spotted With Zac Clark
-
4 charged in Detroit street shooting that left 2 dead, 5 wounded
-
Carrie Bernans, stuntwoman in 'The Color Purple,' hospitalized after NYC hit-and-run
-
Migrant crossings of English Channel declined by more than a third in 2023, UK government says
-
Hilary Swank Reflects on Birth of Her Angel Babies in Message on Gratitude