Playing Pokémon​ Go? Don't Annoy People, Howell Police Chief Says

Howell, NJ -- If you're playing Pokémon Go in Howell, police are urging residents to be smart about how they play the game.

"Although, the game in itself is harmless, the activity associated with it has raised credible concerns with police departments and the public," Howell Police Chief Andrew Kudrick Jr. said in a post on Facebook.

Howell police have received numerous calls reporting suspicious activity and suspicious persons throughout the township, Kudrick said, including activity around the township's former municipal building directly behind police headquarters.

"Officers have reported watching multiple cars pulling into closed businesses and persons walking along the shoulder of Route 9 while looking down at their phones," Kudrick said. "Participants are trespassing on private property and are going into places they shouldn't be."

The smartphone app-based game, which utilizes the phone's GPS function to locate hidden creatures visible only through your mobile's camera, has exploded in popularity across the country since its release July 6. It requires players to get out into the community to explore landmarks, public places and area neighborhoods, in search of the creatures in a virtual scavenger hunt.

"The activity associated with this game causes our officers to be distracted from their normal, legitimate patrol duties," he said. "More importantly, the potential for someone getting hurt or involved in a bad situation participating in this game is an almost certainty."

There have been reports in other states of issues; two people had to be rescued after falling off a cliff in California while playing the game, and a couple was arrested at an Ohio zoo after they were found playing the game near the tigers' enclosure after hours.

There also have been positive results from the game. A pair of Marines playing the game helped detain a manwho was harassing women and children in a park in California; it turned out the man was wanted for attempted murder.

Because people are in a heightened state of security awareness in the wake of the Dallas law enforcement officer shootings, any activities seen as unusual are being reported, he said.

With that in mind, Kudrick urged gameplayers to "use good judgment."

"Don't annoy the general public and the police. Stay off other people's property and don't engage in odd behavior that going to make people suspicious," he said.

"Better yet, delete the game off your phones, head over to one of our local parks and play a good ol' game of kick ball," Kudrick said.