Police Have Logged Hundreds Of Pokémon Go–Related Crimes, Including A Street Brawl

    Hundreds of crimes, including a brawl involving 30 players and reports of trespassing, have been recorded by police in England and Wales.

    Police in England and Wales have recorded 290 Pokémon Go–related incidents since the game launched in July, according the BBC, which obtained the data using the Freedom of Information Act.

    Robberies, thefts, assaults, and driving offences were listed among the crimes reported by 29 police forces.

    In one incident, Surrey police attended a brawl of 30 people fighting after a Pokémon hunt turned nasty.

    In other instances, concerns were raised about children walking over graves in a cemetery and trespassing on railway tracks.

    Drivers were also reported to have been caught playing the game at the wheel and in another reported offence, nine vehicles were stopped at a junction while their drivers were looking for Pokémon.

    People were also reported to be driving the wrong way down one-way streets searching for the virtual-reality creatures.

    Greater Manchester police and the Metropolitan police noted several incidents of theft at Pokémon "lures", with robbers snatching gamers' mobile phones.

    And in one incident, police said someone had "offered sexual favours" but didn't provide any further details.

    Niantic, the company behind the app, said it took player safety seriously and encouraged people to be aware of their surroundings, to be safe and alert, to abide by the law, and not to drive and play.

    Pokémon Go has been implicated in a series of crimes, including reports in the US of armed robbers targeting players, and an incident in Las Vegas where a man who attempted to rob a group of Pokémon Go players was shot.

    UPDATE

    Surrey police said in a statement on 14 August 2017 that the brawl involving 30 people was only reported by someone who was playing the game at the time. The fight itself was unconnected to Pokémon.