Gamer Arrested For Using WoW Gold to "Groom" Underage Boys

[Andy Chalk]

Gamer Arrested For Using WoW Gold to "Groom" Underage Boys

A 28-year-old man from Copenhagen has been charged after authorities discovered that he was using gold from World of Warcraft [http://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Pc/dp/B000067FDW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1278969746&sr=1-3] to pay for naked pictures and videos from underage boys.

The unnamed man is currently in Copenhagen City Court, where he faces allegations of "grooming" 25 boys aged 12-16 years by using World of Warcraft to convince them to take photos and videos of themselves naked and, in some cases, masturbating. Authorities said he possessed a "significant" amount of in-game gold, which he offered to the boys in exchange for the material; he reportedly had roughly 10,000 photos and 1200 videos of underage boys on his computer when he was arrested.

Along with their exchanges in World of Warcraft, the man also spoke to the boys over MSN Messenger [http://webmessenger.msn.com/], where "more private exchanges could take place." The man has acknowledged that he received the photos and videos via email but denied enticing the boys into it. A ruling on the matter is expected within a week.

There are a lot of questions that remain unanswered in all this, but I think we all know which one is going to come to the fore first: How long before videogames are somehow held responsible for this?

Source: Copenhagen Post Online [http://www.cphpost.dk/news/crime/48177-man-grooms-boys-to-send-naked-pics.html]

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[Darktau]

Well it was their choice, they could of chose not to, but they didn't.

EDIT: Personally, I would need more than a "significant" amount of money ;P

 

[HardRockSamurai]

Holy crap! WOW gold can pretty much buy you anything nowadays.
[small]That's really fucking scary.[/small]

 

[Booze Zombie]

I don't know, sounds like those boys were exploiting a pervert to get gold.
I don't really think people are that innocent.

 

[Therumancer]

It doesn't surprise me, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's been going on in WoW for a long time. Generally speaking this is the kind of stuff you see happening in games like Gaia Online or Second Life.

Truthfully though, I would expect underage gay camwhores (which is what we're dealing with, even though girls are more common) to have been dealing through Amazon.Com as much as through WoW.

 

[farmerboy219]

let me guess..."it wasn't me it was the games fault! if i didn't have all that in game gold i wouldn't have even tried!"

 

[Armored Prayer]

Wow seriously? 10,000 photos of underage boys?

I can't tell which is worse, the Pedophile or the amount of underage boys agreeing to take naked photos of themselves.

 

[Daveman]

Surely you get the money first... then RICKROLL HIM!

 

[Aedes]

How far can people go to get ingame currency...

 

[Hiphophippo]

I'm just going to go ahead and say it.

"I'd send a picture of dick to a random guy on the internet for thousands of WoW gold (assuming I still played). Also, I could claim trauma over the whole ordeal, maybe sue him and get some real life gold out of it too."

Perspective people.

 

[Srkkl]

That is beyond fucked up. Dumbass little boys though, I know your not supposed to blame the victims but Jesus Christ, all that for fake gold?

 

[MurderousToaster]

So, this is basically underage WoW prostitution?

I would have got the money, then hooked up my video input to just display an image of Goatse or lemonparty. Then I'd trace his IP and call the Danish police.

EDIT: This thread is also pissing me off as I had my WoW password stolen today. Damn coincidences.

 

[Davrel]

Now thats what I call farming!

 

[ryai458]

While this is disgusting, surely these kids must have known exactly the consequences of this?

Michael Atkinson is going to shit bricks when he hears this from his Death Star.

Death Star?, Michael Atkinson is flying in from dark space the area in between galaxies, "confidence born of ignorance".

 

[Banana Phone Man]

I can't help thinking why those kids agreed to do it. Is WoW realy that addicting for kids to even go so far as post images of themselves for perverts? Or is just a lot of kids have very suggestable minds. It's sick.

I hope that guy rots in prison for a very long time, or worse.

 

[DigitalSushi]

let me guess..."it wasn't me it was the games fault! if i didn't have all that in game gold i wouldn't have even tried!"

Technically your right in your sarcasm farmerboy!, to be so obsessive as to get hold of/keep 10,000 pictures and 1200 videos it would need an obsession like WoW to nuture that sort of "hording"

chortle chortle, I'm so clever and I don't even play WoW, because I'm not obsessive!....

although my CD's are in order of Band>Record Label>Publisher>Serial Number.... ermmm the spines are more inline that way.

 

[tk1989]

Now thats what I call farming!

you have a sick sense of humour

 

[Cherry Cola]

Wow seriously? 10,000 photos of underage boys?

I can't tell which is worse, the Pedophile or the amount of underage boys agreeing to take naked photos of themselves.

The pedophile.

Not because he's a pedophile though. More because he managed to scrape enough gold together to get 10,100 pictures of underage boys.

That's massive farming right there.

 

[Vanguard_Ex]

I don't know, sounds like those boys were exploiting a pervert to get gold.
I don't really think people are that innocent.

I was thinking that, sounds like those lads have had a good deal. Make a creep happy, then watch him suffer while you count your WoW gold.