Pokemon Go-playing driver kills woman in Japan

• 8 hours ago
 
• From the sectionAsia

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES

Image captionThe hugely popular games involves catching monsters in augmented reality

A driver playing Pokemon Go behind the wheel has hit and killed a woman in Japan, say police.

The 39-year-old man hit two pedestrians in Tokushima city late on Tuesday. The other woman was seriously injured.

The driver, who has been taken into custody, told police he was not watching the road carefully.

Police, speaking late on Wednesday, said it was the first fatal accident in Japan involving the hugely popular augmented reality game.

Pokemon Go creator Niantic expressed "deep condolences to the family", in a statement, according to media reports. The smartphone app gives players a warning if it detects they might be in a moving vehicle.

Since the game was released in July, public spaces in many parts of the world have been filled with players chasing virtual monsters on their phones.

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Many heritage sites and sensitive locations have banned people from playing on their premises.

However, recent data suggests that since its peak in late July when almost 45 million people worldwide were playing the game its popularity may have started to dwindle.