Yesterday, a 16-year-old kid in London woke up hyped to attend the London Anime & Gaming convention. Finally, an opportunity to show off his Resident Evil “Hunk” costume! For those not in the know, Hunk is a burly and distinctive Umbrella Corporation SWAT team leader, considered one of the fiercest soldiers in the war against bio-organic weapons.
But, as he strolled down Fulham Broadway to the convention in his cosplay, he probably noticed the streets being cleared and people running away in fear, maybe muttering, “Where’s everyone going? Bingo?” Then, out of nowhere, a squad of antiterror cops appeared from nowhere, smashed him to the floor, and dragged him off.
It was at that point that the kid realized that maybe strolling down a busy city street dressed in a gas mask, tactical gear, and holding a realistic-looking replica firearm may not have been the smartest idea. Cops, presumably unaware of both Hunk’s status in the Resident Evil universe and the convention taking place nearby, were left baffled:
We have responded to an incident this afternoon in Fulham – details here: pic.twitter.com/1j9CKl7FtX
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) August 30, 2025
But the internet soon figured out what was going on, identifying the ‘mass shooter’ as being a video game cosplay, holding a plastic gun with a bright orange tip:
— The Touchline | 𝐓 (@TouchlineX) August 30, 2025
𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗘: There is a possibility that the police have got it wrong as there is a comic-con going on in Hammersmith today, with the person they are arresting potentially dressing up like an umbrella cop.
Awaiting confirmation.
We can only hope the most this poor gamer gets is a stern talking-to by both cops and his parents, and that’s it. This seems like a case of a teenager not thinking through his actions rather than any effort to scare or terrorize people.
“I’ll give you a holy body!”
It should probably also be underlined that this could have gone a lot worse for the poor kid. British cops are generally unarmed, and even their armed units are much more reluctant to use their weapons than their American counterparts. If this had been on the streets of Dallas or New York, you could be reading a much more tragic story.
In future, why not stick to the Resident Evil cosplay classics? Leon Kennedy in his various guises is always fun, as is hamming it up as Albert Wesker in a long trenchcoat. And, if you want to be a little more creative, why not rock up as a biological monstrosity bristling with eyeballs?
