York Regional Police are warning parents and teens about the dangers of the “senior assassin” game following multiple reports of youth spotted with water guns that were mistaken for firearms.
The game, which has gained popularity among high school students, involves players attempting to “eliminate” each other in public settings using water guns, foam darts or gel-blaster projectiles. While intended as a playful competition, police say the use of realistic-looking toy weapons poses “serious” risks.
Since the start of the trend, officers have responded to at least five incidents involving suspected firearms — all of which turned out to be toy guns, according to the police’s statement.
Some toy guns look identical to real firearms, police say, and officers responding to these weapons calls “are often in the position of having to make quick decisions regarding whether the weapon is real, a toy or a replica, which could have significant consequences.”
“Replica firearms, air guns, gel guns or toy guns used in the commission of another offence are considered legitimate weapons and those responsible will face significant criminal charges,” police further warn.
Although reports indicate he wasn’t engaging in the so-called “Senior Assassin” game, just months earlier, a Surrey teenager was tragically shot and killed in an incident involving a replica firearm, as previously reported by True North. Police who responded to the incident were dispatched with a mental health practitioner.
South of the border, a Texas high school student is in critical care after playing the game — according to U.S. media reports. Armed with water guns and chasing classmates through an Arlington neighbourhood, Isaac Leal, 17, jumped onto the back of a Jeep that began to pull out of a driveway. Only minutes after the vehicle pulled away with the 17-year-old standing on the back bumper, he was on the ground with a severe head injury.
The newest warning from York Regional Police echoes earlier warnings from the Winnipeg Police Service and other departments across both Canada and the United States regarding the game.