75-Year Old Pokemon Go Player Found Guilty of Assaulting In-Game Rival

A 75-year old Pokemon Go player and his son were found guilty of third-degree assault after an argument over a gym with an in-game rival escalated into a fight. Per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Robert Matteuzzi, 75, and his son Angelo Matteuzzi, 35 were found guilty of third-degree assault by a St. Louis County jury last week. The pair were convicted after they were filmed fighting with a third person over a gym in Kirkwood Park on Father’s Day in 2018. The victim, who goes by the name “Sammy the Bull” in the game, testified that an argument over the gym escalated when the younger Matteuzzi punched the victim and sent them both into a lake. A video shown by prosecutors showed the pair punching the victim and holding his head under water. 

According to testimony, the victim suffered facial abrasions, a traumatic eye injury, a broken fingertip and a detached fingernail. According to Angelo Matteuzzi’s testimony, he suffered a swollen fist and missing teeth from the confrontation. Another member of the Matteuzzi family also testified that the pair had a previous run-in with the gaming group the victim belonged to.

When taking the stand for the defense, Angelo Matteuzzi was quoted as saying “I didn’t want to be in the water.” When shown footage of him voluntarily jumping in the water, Matteuzzi replied “When you’re 71 and you get punched in the head, you don’t know what you’re doing.”

After deliberation, the jury recommended three days of jail time and a fine for Robert Matteuzzi, and a fine with no jail time for Angelo Matteuzzi.