A Chinese teen poured gasoline over a classmate and set him on fire in response to a dispute. When asked why he did it, the teenager claimed to have transformed into a Fire Mage from World of Warcraft:
A 17 year old Beijing boy had a fight with a classmate and lost. He took revenge a few days later by dumping a water bottle full of gasoline onto the classmate and lighting him on fire. The victim ended up with burns on 55% of his body, including third-degree burns on 38% of his body. (Click here to read the Chinese article.)
The perpetrator claimed he had lost himself in World of Warcraft and when he committed the crime he had transformed into a Fire Mage.
He was sentenced to 8 years in jail, an accomplice received 7 years, and he and the accomplice and their families were ordered to pay 760,000 RMB in restitution to the victim.
I may be a terrible person, but I couldn't get this out of my head the whole time I was reading the story:
If anyone sees Mini-Me with a lighter, call the Stormwind Guards.