Lansing police say a viral game involving teens toting realistic “gel” or Orbeez-style toy guns around town is scaring the daylights out of people across the south suburban village. Officers report a spike in 911 calls and rattled bystanders, and in at least one case, witnesses were so sure they were watching a hijacking that they phoned it in as a major crime. What looks like a goofy prank to teens, police warn, can look like a life-threatening situation to everyone else, raising the risk that someone responds with real force.
Police Sound The Alarm
Sgt. Dana Tatgenhorst told FOX 32 Chicago that when it comes to these hyper-realistic gel guns, “perception is everything” and warned that “this can go really bad, really quickly.” He and other officers said the department once fielded six separate calls in a single day and recovered eight modified gel guns, a pace that has made the toys a regular feature on patrol. Residents and officers say the lifelike shapes, combined with orange tips that are hidden or painted over, turn what should be harmless toys into a public safety headache.
How The Toys Are Being Altered
The department shared photos and a public safety post on Facebook that showed gel blasters with their orange safety markings painted over, according to The Lansing Journal. Many of the models, sold under names like Orbeez or Orby or as generic gel blasters, copy the size and silhouette of real pistols and rifles. Once the orange tips or bright plastic are covered up, police say they are extremely hard to tell from actual firearms at any distance. Lansing officers say the altered replicas are often used in a social media “assassination” game where teens track down friends in public and shoot them with gel pellets, a setup that practically invites bystanders to dial 911…