Criminals used Pokémon Go over the weekend to lure unsuspecting Pokémon fans to a certain location, and then robbing them at gunpoint.
Pokémon Go has proven to be extremely popular, with millions of downloads after being made officially available for the Play Store and App Store in: the US, Australia and New Zealand.
The new augment reality game encourages users to venture outside to fully utilise the game and gain the full experience of Pokémon Go. Unfortunately some unsavoury characters took advantage of this aspect and used a certain feature to lure users and impact their faith in humanity.
The O’Fallon, Missouri Police Department of the US apprehended four men in a black BMW, who were in the proximity of an area, where an armed robbery was reported. The suspects were already suspected of multiple armed robberies in St. Louis and St. Charles Counties.
How the criminals used Pokémon Go
Pokémon Go is a free to play game but like most mobile games you can pay a bit of real world currency to make the game a bit more easier/enjoyable. Lure modules can be bought and placed in Pokestops (landmarks in your city), which for a certain time will attract more wild Pokémon to that location.
Developer Niantic made it so every Pokémon Go user can take advantage of a single player’s lure module, a brilliant and accessible feature, which has sadly been taken advantage of by pond scum.
The O’Fallon, Missouri Police Department believe the suspects carried out this method to lure fans to a car park, before robbing them at gun point. The police also recovered a handgun from the suspects.
The UK is yet to see an official release of Pokémon Go, but if you’re on Android you can get your hands on it here.
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