Over the past week there has been much written about accused Thai killer Polwat Chinno (at left, supposedly re-enacting his crime for investigators).

Police in Bangkok claim Chinno's alleged murder of a taxi driver was sparked by his playing of Grand Theft Auto.

On that score our attention was caught by this excerpt from yesterday's edition of The Telegraph: 

After the stabbing, [Chinno] tried to steal the taxi with the dead driver in the back seat, but did not know how to drive. Neighbours in Soi Jaran Sanitwong in central Bangkok called police after Polwat constantly pressed on the horn as he reversed into a dead end. When police arrived Polwat had locked himself in the car.

...all of which begs the question:

If Grand Theft Auto supposedly trained this 19-year-old man to kill so effectively, how could it be that it didn't train him to drive very effectively? After all, we'd estimate (conservatively) that GTA players spend at least 25% of their game time cruising around the series' open environments in a wide array of vehicles.

The lawyer for a 25-year-old New Zealand man who pleaded guilty to beating a police officer and stealing a patrol car has blamed his client's crime in part on playing Grand Theft Auto - and the judge apparently agreed.

As reported by the Dominion Post, attorney Cris Nicholls argued at the sentencing hearing for Tim Reid that his client's behavior was influenced by the game.

From the news account:

[Reid] committed violent offences and compulsively played Grand Theft Auto. Mr Nicholls said a video game that showed violence toward police was a public safety concern, with the game promoting the behaviour...

 

Wellington District Court judge Denys Barry jailed Reid for five years... He said Reid was hardwired for violence and anti-social behaviour and programmed by his recreational pursuits.

GP: Reid, according to the report, began smoking pot at age five. He had been physically and sexually abused while growing up, and continues to abuse drugs and alcohol. He has priors for assault and robbery. Moreover, he is a 25-year-old man, not an impressionable adolescent.

Yet a video game is to blame?