Word has come out that a murder that took place in a northeastern town in Latvia has been linked to the Mortal Kombat game series. A teenager was killed by a group of friends who claim they were imitating moves from the popular fighting game series. From the article:
The five boys, aged 13 to 16, were arrested Sunday by the police of this town of 43,000 inhabitants 120 kilometres (74 miles) north of the capital in connection with the murder which occurred on Saturday, the spokeswoman said.

They explained that "they used techniques borrowed from the video game 'Mortal Combat' in dealing with their victim", the spokeswoman, Kristine Mezaraupa said.

The boys described how they beat up their friend, Marcis, born in 1991, and threw his body in the nearby Gauja river, according to the head of Valmiera police department Juris Andersons.
Later on in the article, psychologist Zaiga Blaua points out, "Videogames could be a catalyst for violent behaviour, alerted by alcohol, but one cannot reduce the real motives of the teen murderers to the influence of video games."

To read the article in its entirety, click here.

Our thanks to forum members DECEPTION and JayboH for the heads-up on this tragic story.