Fremont Police Warn About 'Assassins' Game
- Police are urging teens to stop playing the 'Assassins' game after safety concerns and risky stops. - Officers say the fake-weapon game has prompted high-risk patrols and traffic stops in the city. - Police warn it can escalate into dangerous encounters and ask parents to intervene (patch.com).
Fremont police are warning high school seniors to stop playing “Assassins,” saying the water-gun game is triggering dangerous calls and police stops. (ktvu.com) The Fremont Police Department said the game is being played off campus across the city, with 12th-grade students using toy guns such as water guns and Nerf blasters to “target” other students. Police said some of those toy guns look realistic enough to be mistaken for firearms. (ktvu.com) Police said the activity has already led to high-risk patrol and traffic stops in Fremont because officers and bystanders can mistake the behavior for an armed threat. The department said the calls also pull officers away from “legitimate emergencies.” (ktvu.com) The game is a spring ritual for many seniors, usually played near graduation and often organized through apps that assign targets and track eliminations. Splashin, one of the apps built for the game, says “Senior Assassin” has been a high school tradition since the 1980s. (abcnews.com) (splashin.app) Warnings like Fremont’s have spread in April as police departments around the country report 911 calls, school disruptions and arrests tied to the game. USA Today reported on April 14 that departments nationwide were cautioning families after incidents tied to the trend. (usatoday.com) In one Indiana case cited by national outlets, Portage police said a teenager was arrested after multiple 911 callers reported someone with what looked like a gun near a Planet Fitness. ABC 7 Chicago reported police later said the teen had been playing “senior assassins” with a realistic-looking water gun. (abc7chicago.com) Fremont police said students who carry an item that resembles a firearm could face law-enforcement contact, a citation or arrest. The department also said parents could face financial liability if the game leads to injuries or property damage. (ktvu.com) The department asked parents to step in before the game produces a worse encounter. In Fremont, where police say they handled 297,302 calls for service, the message was blunt: a fake-weapon game can look real enough to turn into a real police response. (fremontpolice.gov) (ktvu.com)
