Fremont Police Warn About 'Assassins' Game

Fremont police are warning high school seniors to stop playing “Assassins” after toy guns used in the game triggered public alarm and high-risk stops. (ktvu.com) The Fremont Police Department said April 20 that the game is typically played off campus by 12th-graders using water guns, Nerf blasters, and other imitation weapons to “target” classmates around the city. Officers said some of those toy guns look realistic enough that residents and patrol officers can mistake them for real firearms. (kron4.com) Police said recent reports tied to the game have already led to escalated patrol responses and traffic stops in Fremont. The department said every report of possible gun violence or suspicious firearm use is treated as real until officers can prove otherwise. (ktvu.com) The warning lands in late April, when “senior assassin” games usually spread among graduating classes in Fremont and other U.S. communities. The format is simple: seniors try to eliminate assigned classmates with water guns outside school, often using cars, parking lots, and neighborhoods as the playing field. (abcnews.go.com) What turns a prank into a police issue is not the game’s rules but the setting and the props. Fremont police said realistic-looking toy guns, trespassing, and reckless driving can make a student look like an armed suspect or a prowler to a neighbor who has no idea a game is underway. (kron4.com) Fremont police said students who carry an item that resembles a firearm, trespass, or drive recklessly can face law enforcement contact, citations, or arrest. The department also said imitation weapons are not allowed on school campuses and that parents could be financially liable for injuries or property damage tied to the game. (ktvu.com) The department said it is working with Fremont Unified School District and asking parents to talk with their children about the risks. Fremont’s public news page did not list a separate city press release on the warning as of April 22, but local outlets reported the department’s statement from April 20. (kron4.com; fremontpolice.gov) Fremont is not alone. In Portage, Indiana, police said an 18-year-old was arrested after officers responding to a report of an armed person found a water gun in his car; in Kenner, Louisiana, a resident fired warning shots after seeing teens hiding around a driveway during the same game. (abcnews.go.com) Fremont police said the point of the warning is to keep a fake-weapon game from ending in a real emergency. Their message to seniors and parents was blunt: stop playing before an officer, a neighbor, or a driver mistakes a toy for a gun. (ktvu.com)