PlayStation 4 has been featured in the worldwide news for all the wrong reasons over the past week with three separate incidents sparking worldwide attention.
PlayStation 4 became the buzzword of the day in Brantford, a city in south-western Ontario, Canada, after the police were called when parents could not control their thirteen-year-old son’s temper tantrum.
The boy, just barely a teenager, had become involved in a verbal argument with his parents and his sibling, centred around his use of the family’s PlayStation 4. The father decided to take the PlayStation 4 away from the boy to punish him for his actions, which caused the boy to launch into a major temper tantrum.
According to police, and as reported by CBC Canada , the boy went outside and began smashing property with a baseball bat and a hammer.
The boy’s father phoned the police just after 7 p.m. to request assistance since he was unable to calm down his son.
By the time the police arrived at the family’s home, the boy had somehow been locked in the family’s garage, though it is unclear how the parents managed to get him in there. The parents purportedly told the police that they had locked the boy in the garage for fear of their safety.
Meanwhile, the boy was attempting to smash the door and locks to gain entry back into the house.
Constable Natalie Laing, a Brantford police media officer, confirmed that the boy caused damage.
“It was a dangerous situation. He was out of control.”
The boy was taken into custody for a bail hearing, having been charged with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and mischief under $5,000.
Twitter has been abuzz, with debate flaring up as to whether it was appropriate for the police to be called.
In dire need of team sports: “ @CBCNews : Police called, PlayStation tantrum, out-of-control son http://t.co/SqXbn53vG7 pic.twitter.com/VKtIajpMoE
— Peter Dyakowski (@PeterDyakowski) May 11, 2015
Nice kid. http://t.co/aQ1Rd0XX7T — Chris/Smash (@SmashMasterShow) May 11, 2015
Meanwhile, a PlayStation caused even more serious problems for another family, where a four-year-old Saudi boy shot and killed his father at close range when the father did not bring the boy a PlayStation when he returned home.
Saudi boy, 4, shoots father dead because he didn’t buy him a playstation http://t.co/yTYyMzHq #tantrum
— WikiLeaksLover (@NOH8ER) April 24, 2012
In other recent tragic PlayStation 4 news this week, an eighteen-year-old man has died after jumping to his death from a motorway bridge after an argument with his mother. Paul Bickle, who suffered from obsessive-compulsive disorder and clinical depression, had been swearing and shouting at his PlayStation 4 while playing Grand Theft Auto , prompting his mother to turn off the PlayStation 4 console, reported AnonHQ .
#Suicide #CAMHS : Solihull teenager plunged to death from motorway bridge after Playstation row http://t.co/VbIbjSd4y4 @Archangelolill #NHS — Sam Wong (@sam4wong) May 3, 2015
These recent PlayStation 4 tragedies have prompted renewed interest in the amount of time children and teenagers are spending on electronic devices such as the PlayStation 4.
[Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images]
