Tipsheet

Is This the Most Bizarre 'Crime' Police Have Ever Investigated?

Leah Barkoukis
Leah Barkoukis  |  January 03, 2024 10:00 AM

British police are facing criticism for taking a case of virtual rape as seriously as the real crime.

In what is the first case of its kind, authorities are investigating the virtual gang rape of a 16-year-old girl’s avatar in the metaverse.

Police justified the investigation, arguing since the experience is immersive, she “suffered the same psychological and emotional trauma as someone who has been raped in the real world,” the Daily Mail reports. 

The teenager was reportedly in a virtual room with a number of other users when her avatar was virtually assaulted by several adult men avatars. 

Some are even calling for new legislation to address the virtual “crime.” Others rightly point out that police resources shouldn’t be wasted investigating such virtual matters especially given an “enormous backlog" of real rape cases exists.   

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Yesterday the National Police Chiefs' Council's Child Protection and Abuse Investigation Lead, Ian Critchley, warned 'the metaverse creates a gateway for predators to commit horrific crimes against children'.

Details of the extraordinary virtual reality case have been kept secret to protect the child involved, amid fears that, for several reasons, a prosecution will not be possible.

But one senior officer familiar with the case said: 'This child experienced psychological trauma similar to that of someone who has been physically raped. There is an emotional and psychological impact on the victim that is longer term than any physical injuries.

'It poses a number of challenges for law enforcement given current legislation is not set up for this.' There have been a number of reported sex attacks on Horizon Worlds, a free VR online game run by Facebook's owner, Meta. (Daily Mail)

It’s unclear why the girl couldn’t have just taken the headset off. 

The report, which reads like it came from the pages of the Babylon Bee, continues: 

Police believe developments in gaming have opened up new avenues for cybercrime, including virtual robbery, ransomware, fraud and identity theft. But current legislation is unlikely to cover rape in the metaverse as sexual assault is defined in the Sexual Offences Act as the physical touching of another person sexually without their consent.

The nature of the metaverse also blurs geographical boundaries, making it difficult to determine which law enforcement agency has jurisdiction over a particular incident when users and perpetrators are in different countries. (Daily Mail)