Two men were arrested over the weekend after they were found to have firearms and ammunition in their car with alleged intent to use them at the Pokémon World Championships. The Pokémon World Championships, held in the Hynes Centre in Boston, Massachusetts, saw the gathering of hundreds of Pokémon competitors, invited and flown to Boston to represent over 30 countries in the World Championships. This annual event allows players to compete in video game and trading card game tournaments for a chance to win a cut of the sizeable prize fund.
Prior to the competition, two such competitors, James Stumbo (27) and Kevin Norton (18), both of whom invited to compete in the trading card game championship, took to social media posting threats of violence towards their fellow competitors as well as a photo of their firearms on the boot of a car (pictured) as they drove from Iowa to Boston gloating about ‘killing the competition’. When Norton was later blocked from the group for bullying behaviour, he responded by saying, “Oh, ok, that’s fine then I will just shoot him on Friday thanks”.
Alarmed by the threats, the group’s moderator alerted the Pokémon International Company in advance, who in turn alerted the Boston Police Department, and actions were taken to ensure both Stumbo and Norton would not gain access to the competition. Upon issuing a search warrant, both suspects were later arrested at a motel in nearby Saugus, Massachusetts and charged for the unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, and other firearm related charges.
“The [Boston Police Department] detectives and collaborating agencies did a great job in the stop and prevention of a potential tragedy,” said commander superintendent Paul Fitzgerald of the department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Analysis in response to the the swift action of the Boston detectives.
