A 20-year-old man from New Jersey has reportedly been arrested after flying to Florida and attacking a gamer with a hammer following an online dispute in the virtual fantasy world of ArcheAge. Fox News Digital.
As a result, Edward Kang is facing a second-degree murder charge in the assault that happened early Sunday morning in Fernandina Beach, where the victim suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper.
“We don’t know what happened between the victim and the suspect, but something may have motivated the suspect to travel to Florida and harm someone.”
“I’m here to tell you this is weird,” Leeper said. He said at a press conference After the incident, he said: “Sometimes you have to say, ‘Huh?’ Sometimes you have to say, ‘What were you thinking?’ And sometimes you have to say, ‘I can’t believe it.’ This incident has made me say all four.”
Leeper further stated that Kang and the victim had never met in person prior to the altercation, and all of their communication was conducted through the video game ArcheAge, a multiplayer role-playing game similar to World of Warcraft.
“This video game allows players to name characters, fight and kill other characters. We don’t know what happened between the victim and suspect, but something may have motivated the suspect to come to Florida and harm the other person,” Leeper continued.
Leeper said officers were dispatched to a physical confrontation at a home in Fernandina Beach early Sunday morning. Upon arrival, officers “observed a large amount of blood in the entryway of the residence and in the victim’s bedroom,” he said.
According to reports, the victim’s father-in-law was awakened in the middle of the night by cries for help, and when he got up to check the situation, he found his son-in-law and Kang struggling on the ground.
Kang was dressed in all black, Entered the victim’s unlocked home He then waited in the hallway during a late-night game until the victim took a toilet break.
Authorities said Kang had boarded a Delta Airlines flight from Newark, New Jersey, to Jacksonville, Florida, a few days earlier, after which he bought a hammer and a flashlight at a hardware store.
Kang initially told his family he was going to Florida to visit a friend he met through an online video game several years ago.
Kang was booked into the Nassau County Jail on Sunday. It was not immediately clear whether Kang had an attorney.
Leeper said the investigation is still ongoing, but that more serious charges may be coming.
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