RuneScape - Virtual Theft Conviction

[woges]

Something you don't see everyday, two teens get 360 hours of community service for theft of Runescape itamz (sorry). Eurogamer have the story. (http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=265299)
The 15 and 14-year-old culprits forced a 13-year-old boy into a transferring a "virtual amulet and a virtual mask" to their accounts in RuneScape.
The Yahoo report is light on detail, but we understand from our friends at Eurogamer.nl (http://www.eurogamer.nl/), who read about it in the paper this morning, that the errant teens beat up and kicked the victim, and threatened him with a knife.
More information. (http://www.rpgwatch.com/show/newsbit?newsbit=10581)

[Greymane]

A case of the courts doing the right thing for the wrong reason, in my opinion.
Shouldn't the beating and aggravated assault be enough to charge the boys with? Making the theft of virtual items in a video game a crime is just ridiculous beyond words. I guess there isn't enough crime there in Holland, so they need to create more? I don't get it. Well, the judge has secured himself an extremely busy docket of cases for the foreseeable future, that's certain.