Tuesday, 5 May, 2009 at 8:49 PST | John Phillips | Print News
It's no question that there are some players, especially in the highly competitive Counter-Strike community, that take the game a little too seriously. In Novosibirsk, Russia, a simple one on one game of Counter-Strike ended in the brutal murder of a seventeen-year-old (Alexei) by his fourteen-year-old rival (Alexander).
According to the investigation report on the Novosibirsk Prosecutors Office website, the two boys had met at a local cyber café to play Counter-Strike together. Alexei, the older of the two boys, had continuously defeated his younger rival which led to several fights breaking out, only to be broken up by the café's administrator. During the night, both boys were drinking alcohol and continued to play the game, despite their rapidly degrading relationship.
Alexander had left the café first and, with another, older friend, waiting outside until Alexei finished playing at 3:00am. Upon leaving, Alexander proceeded to hit Alexei over the head with a brick until he succumbed to his injuries. The half-buried body was discovered the following morning by residents.
The killer testified in court that his seventeen-year-old friend had nothing to do with the murder or attempted disposal of the body. Alexander was found guilty and sentenced to four years imprisonment at a penal colony for minors. The boy was sentenced under Article 111, Paragraph 4 that states that, while the attack was deliberate and meant to cause serious bodily harm, that the death was accidental, hence the short sentence. Prosecuting attorneys attempted to appeal this, but the sentence remains.
