A man in England was sentenced to four months in prison after police found him walking outside while brandishing a miniature replica of the master sword of The Legend of ZeldaArguing it was a real gun, police eventually arrested Anthony Bray, who claims he bought the replica online as a toy.
As first reported by EurogamerOn June 8, CCTV operators spotted Bray with something visible in his hand. It turned out that Bray was holding his Master Sword toy as he walked through the centre of the English town of Nuneaton. Given that the toy’s blade is 15cm long, officers believed he was openly carrying a weapon and eventually arrested Bray for carrying a “sharp object” when he approached them.
The overly long Master Sword toy was reportedly in its sheath, although it could be removed by pressing a button. Bray admitted that he could understand how his toy could have been mistaken for a weapon, but also protested that he would have used it as one without success. Under UK knife laws, you cannot carry a knife with a blade longer than 3 inches, so you can understand why the police would have been concerned.
A sergeant from the investigation unit said: “We have zero tolerance for sharp objects in public, and Bray was a victim of this practice. You can find toys to manipulate that are not 6-inch blades. You can’t walk down the street holding them in front of you.”
If you ask me, four months is a bit too much. Not only will Bray be in prison for a third of a year, he will also have to pay a fine for… walking around with a toy. I can certainly acknowledge the threat of a six-inch blade, but at some point it seems to me that intent, as well as the manufacturer’s responsibility, has to be taken into account. If this was a repeat offender with a history, you could perhaps more easily justify the sentence. But if the criteria for locking people up is now “has anxiety and enjoys The Legend of Zelda”, then they’re going to have to come and get us all.
Image: Nintendo, NBCUniversal, Kotaku Australia