'Zelda' Fan Gets Prison Sentence for Wielding Master Sword in Public

Many fans of The Legend of Zelda are known for being passionate, but one man's love for the video game series has landed him in prison. 

Forty-eight-year-old Anthony Bray was walking around the English town of Nuneaton last month when he ran into police while carrying a miniature replica of the Master Sword, the legendary weapon wielded by series hero Link. According to a report from Warwickshire Police, the sword released from its sheath with the click of a button, leading officers to perceive it as a threat and promptly arrest him when he approached them. 

For his part, Bray said that it was simply a fidget toy he used to keep his hands busy and that he had no intention of using the six-inch sword as a weapon. Still, it was in violation of the law, and he was booked on a charge of possessing a bladed article in a public place. The U.K., which has strict gun control laws, suffers from high levels of knife crime, and has implemented stricter rules around their possession than typically exist in many parts of the U.S. 

Bray has denied he ever planned to use it as a weapon. 

As a result, Bray was sentenced to four months in prison and ordered to pay a victims' surcharge of £154 (about $197). 

"We take a zero tolerance to bladed articles in public, and Bray has fallen afoul of this," Sergeant Fern Spellman of Warwickshire Police's patrol investigations unit said in a statement. "It is possible to find fidget toys that aren’t six-inch blades. It is possible not to walk down the street holding them out in front of you. With a bit more self-awareness, Bray could have avoided contact with us completely."

The latest game in the series, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, releases Sept. 26, giving Bray something to look forward to after he serves his sentence.