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In announcing second-degree attempted murder charges against 20-year-old Edward Kang, Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper said, "This is a weird one.
"Some things make you say, 'hmm.' Some things you just can't make up. Some things make you say, 'What in the world was he thinking?' and there are some things that make you say, 'You're not going to believe this.'
"Well this case makes you say all four of those."
Around 2 a.m. Sunday, June 23, Nassau County Sheriff's deputies were called to a blood-covered home in Fernandina Beach, where a man was woken by his step-son screaming, Leeper said.
Kang — who the sheriff's office said is from Montvale — had let himself into the victim's unlocked home and attacked him with a hammer, the sheriff said.
The victim and his step-dad were able to disarm and restrain Kang until deputies arrived, according to Leeper.
An investigation found that Kang had flown to Jacksonville International Airport before taking an Uber to a local hotel, where he checked in on Friday, June 21, the sheriff says. He apparently told his family he was flying out to meet a friend he'd met from a video game years ago, according to Leeper.
While in Florida, Kang went to ACE Hardware and bought a hammer and a flashlight, Leeper said, citing receipts found in Kang's hotel room. Dressed in all black and wearing a mask and gloves, Kang lelt himself into the victim's unlocked home, the sheriff said.
The victim was taking a bathroom break from playing video games when he opened a door and saw Kang, later identified by authorities, standing there with a hammer raised in an anticipated strike position, Leeper said.
Upon arrival, deputies found blood covering the entryway of the home and the victim's bedroom. They'd later come to learn that Kang and the victim had never met in person, only online, through a fantasy-based, multi-player online game called ArcheAge.
Leeper said Kang was not cooperating with the investigation, "which is not surprising," and has requested legal counsel.
The victim suffered severe but non-life-threatening head wounds.
Kang told investigators that the victim was a bad person online, and asked the deputies how much time a person would get in jail for breaking and entering, and assault, according to the sheriff.
"Mr. Kang, it's going to be a long time until you play video games again," Leeper said in his closing statements.
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