It’s just a few days to the September 6 release date for Starfield and many in the gaming community have run out of patience. One of those who simply could not sit and wait any longer was Darin Harris, the allegedly Starfield leaker who spewed the first 45 minutes of the game earlier in the week.
According to reports, the 29-year-old took things a step further by trying to peddle stolen copies of the game online. However, it appears his luck has run out. The Shelby County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office website shows that Harris was arrested on August 24, a few days after the Starfield leak surfaced online.
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Further information on the law enforcement website shows that Harris is being charged with a felony for having $2,500 to $10,000 worth of stolen property, a misdemeanor charge for possession of marijuana, and a misdemeanor charge for being in custody of about $1,000 stolen property.
A tweet shared by @zVisceral_ on August 22 with the caption “Unboxing + Gameplay video is online #Starfield. Get it while you can” was accompanied by a link to a YouTube video that has now been removed. Harris could not be reached for comment at the time of this post. Also, Microsoft and Bethesda have not replied to comment requests.
Barely days ago, Starfield made headlines after the title screen of the game was criticized by Mark Kern for being uninspiring. Our poll on the topic received mixed reactions from the gaming community.
Starfield leak went viral on August 22
Starfield is Bethesda’s original IP in over two decades. Therefore, it is unsurprising that the buzz around the game has continued to grow. So, when the Starfield leak surfaced online on August 22, it quickly went viral. The grainy mobile phone footage was reposted thousands of times on social media and YouTube.
What many people easily spotted in the Starfield leak was how clueless Harris was about Bethesda’s RPG and how unfamiliar with gaming he was in general. Harris later shared another video online making reference to the initial Starfield leak.
“Todd, no offense man, that’s a good game,” he said. “They were saying I play like a beginner cause I’m not a game expert. I was just trying something out. That’s a good game. Y’all don’t want to miss it.”
Harris’ social shares must have given him out
Things took a dark twist when Harris started uploading listings for additional copies on Mercari, a Japanese e-commerce platform. Among his listings was the rare complete Constellation Edition with a custom-made NASA-punk space watch with a $550 price tag. One of his listings read, “RESERVED for Chris!! Starfield Xbox Series X|S Bundle”. The listings have now been taken down from the platform.
Harris also shared other videos that showed him going to FedEx to ship purchased copies. Fans of the game had questioned the authenticity of Harris’ videos considering how it was difficult for him to have so many copies of the game in his possession prior to release.
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In one of the videos, Harris could be spotted slapping labels on packages with a pile of Starfield copies stacked up on a seat next to him.
“Y’all thought I’d be out here putting stuff on the internet and it ain’t real?” he said. “Nah baby, that ain’t how we do it, that ain’t how we do that. Y’all used to playing with little boys.”
Harris’ videos on his allegedly YouTube channel started disappearing on August 24. It is not clear whether he was trying to clear his history or whether he had already been arrested at that time. However, whatever the case may be, it was already too late for him.
A few decades ago, people would hide to commit crimes. These days, it feels almost normal to proudly stream bad habits and crimes over the Internet. What a weird turn of events!
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