GamerNode: News - Three teens "learned" how to firebomb cars from GTA

Three teens "learned" how to firebomb cars from GTA

Category: Industry, Posted: 08/10/2008 at 02:06PM EDT by Brian Post, Contributor

Firebomb Three teens residing in Milton, Georgia were recently arrested for setting the vehicles belonging to their fellow citizens ablaze by tossing Molotov cocktails at them.

While no specific reasons for firebombing the two Mercedes and a Honda (all of which were separated within a half-mile from one another) other than for fun, the young arsonists didn't fail to mention that they learned how to lob from unspecified installment in Rockstar's ever-controversial Grand Theft Auto series.

Huh, that's funny. I don't recall a mission in GTA4 that required Niko to visit a local Wal-Mart and purchase multiple bottles of Sprite, lighter fluid, and red rags, which investigators discovered were the items used to make the bombs after visiting the teens' local retailer and pulling a receipt listing the aforementioned items. In addition, the investigators also had access to a surveillance tape that featured footage of the teens purchasing the items.

While none of the suspects are of age to be behind bars for their actions, all of them have been charged with 19 felony counts.

[via WSBTV]

(16)

Posted by P-Thunder. on 08/10/2008 at 02:47PM

How did they get the drink?

Its funny, they managed to get hold of GTA4 which is for 18s, and get hold of spirites. Which are people going to moan about the most?

Posted by -=BINGO-BANGO=- on 08/10/2008 at 03:11PM

....o shit, here we go again

Posted by Imonfire on 08/10/2008 at 03:28PM

It's not the first time this happen. IIRC a man killed a taxi driver "to do like in GTA4".But the problem here is not from Rockstar, it's from the people. If they can't do the difference between reality and video games, then there's something wrong with them.

Posted by lskennedy on 08/10/2008 at 04:23PM

sprites a soda pop, anyone can buy it, hell, a 2 year old can. is sprite an alcoholic drink in england?

Posted by El on 08/10/2008 at 05:19PM

Paddy misread "Sprite" as "spirit."

Posted by Oblivion Lotus on 08/10/2008 at 05:43PM

You know what? This is happening a little too often (psycho kids blaming GTA), I bet Jack paid them to do it...

Posted by lskennedy on 08/10/2008 at 05:56PM

ah, there we go, thanks el. i misread paddy.

Posted by SpaceMonkee12 on 08/10/2008 at 07:15PM

Why do stupid people always blame others for their actions? Why, cruel world?!? Why?!!?

Posted by P-Thunder. on 08/10/2008 at 07:53PM

My bad guys, thought it said spirit.

Posted by Winged One on 08/10/2008 at 09:11PM

I hate it how, whenever someone does something bad, they blame it on video games. It's like someone will say "Oh, then it's not your fault. Don't worry, you had nothing to do with it. You're the victim, actually. Your minds were corrupted by the vile bastards at T2."

And the sad thing is, that's probably what will happen. People have got to start taking responsibility for their actions rather than blaming a scapegoat, let alone a scapegoat that couldn't have possibly taught them how to make the Molotov cocktails, and most likely merely mentioned them or featured them as a weapon.

I have a feeling that all these politicians and lawyers think games are perfect simulations, but they're not. Games have their limits, and these limits impede anyone from "training" to cause death or destruction. Otherwise, we'd have madmen running around, trying to strap 17 weapons to their belts, and trying to find bullets and already made bombs on the street.

Posted by lskennedy on 08/11/2008 at 02:02AM

well done winged one

Posted by Winged One on 08/11/2008 at 10:27AM

And, if you think about it, the only challenging part about Molotoving a parked car is actually making the bomb, the part that GTA doesn't teach you how to do "Okay, kids, do this with me. You're going to need a Sprite bottle, lighter fluid, and some rags. Step 1..." It just didn't happen. They probably found out how to make one from a friend or website. After that, what? They learned how to LIGHT the cocktails? They learned how to THROW them? Other than making the bombs, I'm pretty sure the rest of the process is pretty straight forward. If they needed to train in a game how to light and throw the bombs, I think criminal mischief may not be the only problem that needs to be sorted out.

Posted by intooblivion on 08/11/2008 at 12:21PM

I learned how to not die if I'm shot multiple times or fly out of a car windshield from gta4.

I guess I should go on a killing spree now

Posted by Quasar on 08/11/2008 at 03:17PM

Seems like every generation has a scapegoat for why kids do bad things...among those were...comic books, rock and roll music, rap music, movies, television and radio. The media is always the culprit for the evil in society, while the parents, who don't spend time with their kids or care what they do, point the finger at other reasons except the real one...lack of parental involvement or responsible parenthood. It's
hard to tell your kids what's right and wrong when the parents are too busy with their work or spend less than 5 minutes with their kids on
a daily basis.

Posted by sig220 on 08/11/2008 at 03:56PM

Well said Quasar. Aside from what Quasar said the thing that makes me the angriest is that these people who condemn the games never take the time to really research them. Just like the Mass Effect sex scene scandal. That women that wrote the book on it didn't even take the time to find out that they are about 5 seconds, and don't show any bits. Kids can see worse things on TV than that.

Posted by Sersoft.corp on 08/12/2008 at 02:37AM

Lack of parenthood, or too much of it.