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Counter-Strike Gamer Hunts Down, Stabs Man

by - source: Tom's Hardware US

A virtual knife fight led to real-world bloodshed.

News of this sort was bound to surface. After all, who hasn't felt a little fear when other players take the game too far and threaten to show up on your doorstep? That's apparently what has happened over in France: a Counter-Strike in-game fight led to real-world bloodshed, not virtual globs of violet and red.

Twenty-year-old Counter-Strike gamer Julien Barreaux got into a virtual knife fight with another player known only as "Mikhael," The fight came to an abrupt end with Barreaux's character hitting the floor dead. Enraged, Barreaux spent the next six months tracking down Mikhael. He eventually discovered his nemesis living only a couple of miles away in Cambrai, a town two hours north of Paris.

As if mirroring the virtual knife fight, Barreaux armed himself with a real-life kitchen knife and went to the man's house. Once the door was opened, Barreaux whipped out the knife and plunged it into Mikhael's chest. The victim survived, escaping death by less than an inch as the knife passed next to his heart, missing its target.

Local police arrived an hour later and apprehended the irate gamer. Officials said that Barreaux admitted to his game-related motives behind the attack, saying that he "wanted to see his rival wiped out for killing off his character." Needless to say, Barreaux is now behind bars, serving a two-year sentence and forced into anger management therapy.

The judge behind his sentencing was mortified. "You are a menace to society," Judge Alexiane Potel said. "I am frankly terrified of the disproportionate reaction you could have if someone looked at you the wrong way in the street."

There was no indication of any smack-talk taking place during the Counter-Strike interaction.

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JerseyFirefighter 05/28/2010 8:56 PM
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Two years for attempted murder? I have to admit that I would've expected this a long time ago... but 2 years for attempted murder?!?!?!

filmman03 05/28/2010 8:59 PM
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DokkRokken 05/28/2010 8:59 PM
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Two years? Really? After all the time and effort he spent tracking his 'nemesis' you'd think at least ten years confined in a straight-jacked is far more fitting.

FUtomNOreg 05/28/2010 9:03 PM
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Holy ! Only two years? He missed the guys heart by a dang inch! Its his fault for...... at CS:S anyways.

Rhynn 05/28/2010 9:01 PM
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Agreed, 2 years is ridiculously disproportionate for that crime.

krynn73 05/28/2010 9:01 PM
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what is this world coming to?

jtt283 05/28/2010 9:02 PM
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This guy isn't worth two years' expense of food, clothing, and shelter; there are some 7 billion people on Earth; surely more than a few capable, competent replacements for this loser can be found. Stick his head in a bucket and pull the trigger. GAME OVER.

tommysch 05/28/2010 9:03 PM
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I wonder if the other guy had a white flag on him at that time. Its France after all.

tommysch 05/28/2010 9:07 PM
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He should have done what any CS/CSS player would do. When you hear the sound of a knife coming out of its sheath, take your handgun and aim for the head. Hooo wait thats France, they cant. lol

tainted_peak 05/28/2010 9:11 PM
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Quote :Local police arrived an hour later
Surprised that guy didn't bleed to death being that close to his heart.

flyinfinni 05/28/2010 9:12 PM
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That was truly a premeditated murder attempt. How the heck can you possibly only get 2 years for something like that? 6 months of tracking and planning, to miss murder by an inch. If he'd been an inch over, and killed the guy, it'd be premeditated murder and life in prison, but because he missed its only 2 years. Wow- how screwed up is the justice system, and heck- its just a GAME, and its not like he "killed his character" for more than a few seconds- in CS you re-spawn with no harm done. Its not even like its an MMO where dying actually causes damage to your character- it doesn't even do anything. WOW.

the associate 05/28/2010 9:22 PM
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That's spectacular, 2 years, in Europe?? One one end the gouv tries to pacify us with limitations and restrictions on what we can watch/play/do, then here we go, 6 month premeditated murder followed by attempted murder and the guy gets less jail time than I would get in canada for slapping a security guard as a JOKE when under the influence of alcohol....

*please note I may have over exaggerated in my post :)*

Anonymous 05/28/2010 9:21 PM
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Did he teabag him?

TechDude 05/28/2010 9:21 PM
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Wow. This guy is a freak and is scary

Doommaker 05/28/2010 9:21 PM
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Lol, noob got knifed. I bet he was camping behind an AWP and forgot to check his back.

gpace 05/28/2010 9:28 PM
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News flash: Troubled people will do troubling things. Doesn't matter what the trigger was, troubled people will still be troubled.

It's news like this that puts gamers in a bad light.

As for the person, two years in prison and only anger management therapy? He'll need more then both to become mentally stable enough to be let out.

thegreathuntingdolphin 05/28/2010 9:30 PM
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Wow France...2 Years and Anger Management for attempted murder?!

FAIL

bfstev 05/28/2010 9:32 PM
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Wait, they didnt even smack talk when it happened in game? Hell I could still have people searching for me then after I knifed them and just continued playing.

captjack5169 05/28/2010 9:34 PM
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Quick, call Jack Thompson, and get him on this we can have CSS removed from the planet, LMAO

CoryInJapan 05/28/2010 9:37 PM
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Im pretty sure most if not all criminals play some sort of video game and or PC game.How come I never here madden thug rapes,kills,stabd,shoots.etc.

They only mention the violent based games to make people think its the game.Its always much much more than just a game.Which I dount the game had anything to do with it.

sliem 05/28/2010 9:38 PM
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Two years is enough, as he would be dead in prison before his first month. Lol. Crazy kid should get 10 years at least.

sstym 05/28/2010 9:41 PM
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TommySch :
I wonder if the other guy had a white flag on him at that time. Its France after all.



Touché. We do play a CS:S mod called "Surrender le Flag"

babachoo 05/28/2010 9:42 PM
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I wonder if he said "Gotcha " when he stabbed him. I know I would have, if I was that insane.

etrom 05/28/2010 9:42 PM
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filmman03 :
WTF. I was rather surprised that this didn't occur in the US LOL



In France they're more "polite", the guy used a knife. If this case happened in US, the result would be several people killed by a sniper in a school, with the ammo bought in a major market chain...

ArgleBargle 05/28/2010 9:48 PM
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What the article *didn't* say was that his "anger management" would be to play "Hello Kitty Adventure Island" eight hours a day for two years.

Dirtman73 05/28/2010 9:54 PM
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sstym 05/28/2010 10:00 PM
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Arglebargle :
What the article *didn't* say was that his "anger management" would be to play "Hello Kitty Adventure Island" eight hours a day for two years.




Nuh-uh. That's cruel and unusual punishment.

Anonymous 05/28/2010 10:06 PM
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I like the people who state the guy who did the stabbing should stop sucking at CS. Maybe the guy who GOT stabbed should stop sucking at life? He got stabbed he should have dodge or used one the various cheats that plague CS. Go France, 2 years for almost killing someone, yeahhhh... I guess it's not a big concern when your chain smoking and eating frog legs, we we

obiown77 05/28/2010 10:11 PM
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in other news in France, 22 old get 5 years for dealing pot, during the trial..

The judge behind his sentencing was mortified "You are a menace to society," Judge Alexiane Potel said. "I am frankly terrified of the disproportionate reaction you could have if someone asked you for POT on the street"

thrust2night 05/28/2010 10:13 PM
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The judge behind his sentencing was mortified. "You are a menace to society," Judge Alexiane Potel said. "I am frankly terrified of the disproportionate reaction you could have if someone looked at you the wrong way in the street."

Hmmmm... something about this seems really wrong. The judge acknowledged that the man was a menace to society but only gave him a 2 year sentence? I guess the judge doesn't realize the "disproportionate reaction" this psycho would have against the judge who sentenced him to two years in prison. He should have been put away for a lot longer.

simple_inhibition 05/28/2010 10:21 PM
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im a terrible person, i cant help but to think of the BOOM! HEADSHOT! video in response to this article


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