Edward Kang, a 20-year-old, faces an attempted second-degree murder charge after allegedly attacking a fellow gamer with a hammer following an online dispute.
Kang and the victim had never met in person before the attack, but they knew each other through the online video game ‘ArcheAge’. Florida authorities reported the incident during a press conference, where Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper explained that the game allows players to fight and kill each other’s characters.
Sheriff Leeper said it remains unclear what exactly transpired in the game to prompt Kang to travel to the victim’s Florida home. After his arrest, Kang told authorities that the victim “is a bad person online.” Leeper described the case as “weird,” noting, “Some things make you say, hmm. Some things you just can’t make up… this case makes you say all four of those.”
Kang informed his family that he was going to meet a friend from the game. He flew from Newark to Jacksonville and took an Uber to a hotel in Fernandina Beach, arriving around 2 a.m. on June 21. Receipts showed he later purchased a hammer and a flashlight from an Ace Hardware store.
Approximately 48 hours later, Kang entered the victim’s home through an unlocked door. The victim, who had been playing video games, found Kang standing with a hammer raised in an “anticipated strike position” while wearing all black, gloves, and a mask. The victim’s stepfather, awakened by screams, found his stepson struggling with Kang. They managed to disarm and restrain Kang until deputies arrived.
Both gamers were taken to a local hospital and later released—Kang into custody and the victim with severe but non-life-threatening head wounds. Sheriff Leeper said the investigation suggests Kang left New Jersey with the intent to kill, and charges could be upgraded as the investigation continues.
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