A 75-YEAR-OLD man and his son have been found guilty of third-degree assault after the pair pushed their Pokémon Go rival into a lake and beat them.
The fight took place in 2018, as the two men met the victim at Kirkwood Park in Missouri.
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Robert Matteuzz,i then 71, and his son Angelo, 31 at the time, got in a dispute with the victim known only by their Pokémon Go name, Sammy the Bull.
As reported by St. Louis Post Dispatch, the argument surrounded a nearby Pokémon Gym, where players place their Pokémon and try to keep them there for as long as possible.
Pokémon that remain in the gym for a long time will return to their trainer, with the game’s premium currency Pokécoins.
However, if Pokémon are beaten by an opposing team quickly, then they do not earn any money.
Both the Matteuzzis and Sammy the Bull were fighting over who’s Pokémon would be allowed to remain in the gym.
Angelo Matteuzzi was the first to turn the fight physical as he struck Sammy the Bull.
Robert Matteuzzi joined the fray when the pair fell 5ft into the nearby Walker Lake.
Bystanders recorded the fight, and the footage was used to convict the pair of the assault.
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In the video, the men were seen repeatedly punching the victim and holding their head underwater.
The fight ended when the bystander shouted to the pair to “Get away from each other right now!” before moving in and breaking up the fight.
The victim was left with facial abrasions, a traumatic eye injury, a broken fingertip and a detached fingernail, according to testimony.
Robert Matteuzzi spoke in his defense saying: “I didn’t want to be in the water.
“When you’re 71 and you get punched in the head, you don’t know what you’re doing.”
He did however admit to wanting to “dunk” the victim.
Angelo Matteuzzi was let off with a fine, while Robert Matteuzzi also had to spend three days in jail.
The Matteuzzi family also testified that the pair had been involved in altercations with rival Pokémon Go teams in the past.
Written by Georgina Young on behalf of GLHF.
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