Home

Teen's Murder

U.K. Retailer Pulls Violent "Manhunt" Video Game After Teen's Murder

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 29, 2004 - 4:10am.
London -- U.K. electronics retail chain Dixons has pulled video game publisher Take-Two Interactive's violent "Manhunt" title from shelves, after parents of a 14-year-old murdered by a 17-year-old blamed the act on the game. Developed by Take-Two's Rockstar Games unit -- which also created the violent top-seller "Grand Theft Auto" -- "Manhunt" takes place in a prison where players must kill people in growingly more gruesome manners in order to progress in the game. The title does feature an 18-plus label, and is not intended for sale to minors. Warren Leblanc, 17, has pleaded guilty to murdering Stefan Pakeerah, 14, via repeated blows with a claw hammer and knife. "Stefan's murder compares to how the game is set out, using weapons like hammers and knives. If games like this influence kids, they should be taken off the shelves," Stefan's father Patrick told Reuters. However, prosecutors in the case say that Leblanc lured Pakeerah into a park in order to rob him over an unpaid drug-related debt. A trade group of European video game publishers denied any connection between the game and the murder. "We reject any suggestion or association between the tragic events in the Midlands and the sale of the video game Manhunt," the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers' Association (ELSPA) said, in a statement.
tags: U.K | Video Games | Manhunt | Teen's Murder |