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Woman Arrested After Killing Virtual Ex-Husband

By Ryan Singel, Kevin Poulsen, Sarah Lai Stirland, Kim Zetter, and David Kravets

A 43-year-old Japanese woman, angry over a sudden divorce in the virtual online game Maple Story , has been arrested on suspicion of hacking into the game where she killed her once-virtual husband, authorities said.

Authorities said the Miyazaki woman illegally accessed the game with a password she hijacked from a colleague. That made it appear as if her coworker committed the online murder.

According to The Associated Press, the woman told police: "I was suddenly divorced, without a word of warning. That made me so angry."

The hacking allegation carries a maximum five-year prison term.

Full post as published by Threat Level on October 23, 2008 (boomark / email).