A New Jersey man was arrested after flying to Florida in the middle of the night to attack his rival with a hammer over a feud in an online game.
Lepper told reporters that the attacker allegedly got angry at the victim while playing the decade-old online multiplayer RPG game ArcheAge, and he hopped on a plane to visit the sunshine state.
After arriving, the attacker allegedly stopped at an Ace Hardware to pick up a hammer and a flashlight before sneaking into the victims house.
“The victim’s stepfather reported being awakened by screams for help,” said the sheriff. “When he went to see what was going on he found his stepson on the ground struggling with the attacker, who was in possession of a hammer.”
NEW: New Jersey man is charged with attempted murder after flying to Florida overnight to attack his online video game rival with a hammerEdward Kang, 20, allegedly took an overnight flight from Newark to Jacksonville“The victim’s stepfather reported being awakened by screams…pic.twitter.com/V1RSKw1Ogv
The Sheriff added that when the attacker was asked why he did what he did, the suspect said that the victim was a “bad person online.”
Lepper said that the victim suffered from severe but non life-threatening injuries from the attack.
The details of the suspect’s charges are unknown, but according toFlorida-based criminal lawyers Meltzer & Bell, first-degree attempted murder includes a minimum of 25 years in prison while second-degree attempted murder includes a minimum of just 15 years.
The news of this incident comes just weeks after a Korean YouTuber wasstabbed to death, allegedly by his rival, while streaming outside of a courthouse in Busan, South Korea. The suspect was arrested two hours later, and confirmed in a post on his YouTube channel that he had been arrested.
Related:
Dylan Horetski is a Senior Writer on Dexerto’s US team. He is an expert Entertainment reporter, covering Twitch, YouTube, TikTok, Tech, and viral news. He also has bylines at IGN. You can contact him at: dylan.horetski@dexerto.com
