Wanted Milford man arrested while playing Pokémon GO

A Milford man learned the hard way that it’s important to know where you are when playing “Pokemon Go” after he was arrested Thursday when he accidentally biked to a police station while there was a warrant out for his arrest.

Milford police said the 26-year-old man, who was still in pajama pants, rode up to the station about 10:30 a.m. because it’s the site of a “gym” in the game where players can use their virtual “pocket monsters” to battle other game creatures.

According to Milford Chief of Police Tom Lindberg, a couple of police officers recognized him because they’ve had contact with him.

“Pokemon Go” uses Google maps and the GPS in smartphones to show players where they can find gyms near them, but doesn’t label street names. However, players can see the name of buildings where gyms are located.

After seeing the individual, officers handcuffed him without incident. He was taken to a holding cell at the station, and later arraigned and released on a personal recognizance bond that day, Lindberg said.

The warrant was issued after he failed to appear for a court date. He originally was charged with breaking and entering.

Thursday’s incident wasn’t the first instance of “Pokemon Go” causing people to unexpectedly stumble upon something in Metro Detroit this week.

On Wednesday, two people playing the game in Royal Oak called 911 when they saw a fire on the deck of a house. The Fire Department put out the fire, which left minimal damage and spared a 10-year-old flat-coat retriever named Stanley.

Lindberg said he has no doubt that police would have found the man within a week, even if he hadn’t accidently ridden his bike to the police station.

“He said that he forgot that he had a warrant out for his arrest,” Lindberg said. “Like I said, we don’t catch the smart ones.”

excarter@detroitnews.com

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Twitter: @evancarter_94