The police department of Manchester, New Hampshire, is attempting to capture fugitives through tempting suspects with the prospect of rare Pokemon GO monsters.

Pokemon GO has managed to grab the attention, and the imagination, of a wide variety of gamers since it launched earlier this month. The already beloved free-to-play mobile title has become a worldwide phenomenon, with even the mysteries of Area 51 not free from the attention of Pokemon trainers. One police department, however, is hoping that even fugitives might be playing the game.

As it turns out, the police department of Manchester, New Hampshire, is trying to lure in those on the run from the law through Pokemon GO. According to the department itself, via the official Manchester NH Police Facebook page, a Charizard has appeared in the police station’s booking area. Given the rarity of the Pokemon in question, the police of Manchester have very kindly put a list of eligible trainers together, inviting them down to the station to take their chance at catching the Charizard.

However, theses “lucky ones” chosen by the department all happen to fit the following criteria: wanted persons from the Manchester area. So far, the lure has yet to be successful in apprehending a suspect, but surely it’s only a matter of time before the prospect of a Charizard grows too strong for someone. The Facebook post itself has certainly proved popular, with over 20,000 likes so far.

This is far from the first time that the police have had some involvement with Pokemon GO. Indeed, the police in Milford, Michigan, had much more luck catching a crook, after a player with an outstanding warrant turned up at the police station to try and install himself as the new gym leader. Meanwhile, in Darwin, Australia, a police station’s role as a PokeStop – and a catching area for Sandshrew – led to the police in question issuing a statement advising players that they did not need to enter the police station to make best use of its Pokemon GO functionality.

Unfortunately, some criminals themselves have also been making use of Pokemon GO to suit their own purposes. As one example, a group of armed robbers in Missouri has managed to rob 9 different victims through luring players to a nearby PokeStop. It’s certainly worth reading up on the dangers of Pokemon GO before heading on out to play.

The response to the release of Pokemon GO has been incredible thus far, with players going to extreme lengths to catch much-wanted Pokemon. The appearance of Vaporeon in Central Park last week led to a full-on mob of players trying to catch the rare monster, while some users are even hiring drivers to reach PokeStops. With the game still yet to hit in all regions, there are still bound to be many more wild Pokemon GO stories yet.

Pokemon GO is available now for iOS and Android devices.

Source: Manchester NH Police (via The Guardian)