Pokemon Go used ‘to lure innocent victims into a trap’, cops claim
Popular children's game allegedly used as bait to tempt targets into dangerous and isolated situations
Cops have claimed the game Pokemon Go has been used to lure innocent victims into a trap so they can be robbed of their possessions.
Police in Missouri have arrested a group of four men suspected of "multiple armed robberies" in the counties of St. Louis and St. Charles.
Victims were allegedly lured by a "beacon" which is set in a real world location to attract monsters in the game.
Up to 11 people have been targeted in the area, although it is unclear whether they are children or adults.
Brett Miller, 17, Jamine Warner, 18, Shane Backer, 18, and a juvenile, 16, were charged with first-degree robbery and armed criminal action.
In a statement, police explained how they think Pokemon Go could be used by criminals.
"You can add a beacon to a pokestop to lure more players," officers wrote on Facebook.
The app can then be used to "locate people standing around in the middle of a parking lot or whatever other location they were in".
Police issued an urgent warning to all parents whose kids play the game, which is a spin-off of Nintendo's world famous series and invites players to catch monsters hiding at locations in the real world.
"If you use this app (or other similar type apps) or have children that do we ask you to please use caution when alerting strangers of your future location," the force continued.
Any player is vulnerable to a similar scam, especially if they are focusing all their attention on catching Pokemon and not paying attention to what's going on around them.
“[Some players are] not aware of their surroundings because they’re staring at their phones,” Sgt. Bill Stringer told the Daily News.
O'Fallon Missouri Police Department's statement in full
This morning at approximately 2 am we responded to the report of an Armed Robbery near the intersection of Highway K and Feise Road. We were able to locate four suspects occupying a black BMW a short time later and recover a handgun. These suspects are suspected of multiple Armed Robberies both in St. Louis and St. Charles Counties. It is believed these suspects targeted their victims through the Pokemon Go smart phone application.
Many of you have heard of Pokemon Go, but for those that have not, it is a type of Geo Caching game where you find and capture Pokemon characters at various locations. If you use this app (or other similar type apps) or have children that do we ask you to please use caution when alerting strangers of your future location.
Many of you have asked how the app was used to rob victims, the way we believe it was used is you can add a beacon to a pokestop to lure more players. Apparently they were using the app to locate ppl standing around in the middle of a parking lot or whatever other location they were in
Cops in Duvall, Washington, have also issued a statement after catching players "popping up" around the police headquarters at all hours of the day and night.
"Please remember that these are especially tense times as of the last few days," one officer wrote on Facebook.
"DO NOT LURK AROUND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AT ANY HOUR WHILE YOU ARE PLAYING POKEMON GO- it makes an unsafe situation for you and our officers.
"If you feel the need to use the police department as part of your game, just use common sense: Come on in to the lobby during business hours and say hi and let someone behind the counter or an officer know you are looking for an imaginary critter thing and make sure that your presence is well-known."
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Police in the town said "an officer should not be placed in a position where people are hiding in the dark when he needs to get to his patrol car a few feet away".
"When I started in this profession never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that there would come a day when I would have to ask the public not to chase imaginary creatures behind the station at night," cops continued.
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