mugging 復習
Pokémon Goで遊んでいる最中に事件や事故に遭う人が続出しています。
Pokémon players shot at in Palm Coast, Fla.
Pokémon Go has led to muggings, car crashes, cliff rescues — and now a shooting.
A 19-year-old man and his 16-year-old friend were sitting in a car on Primrose Lane playing Pokémon Go around 1:30 a.m., when a man walked out of his house nearby and fired shots at the car, according to a news release from the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
Moments before the shooting, they said they heard someone say, "did you catch him?" the teens told the sheriff's office.
One of them said, "yeah, did you?"
That's when they heard several shots fired.
The car sped off. They arrived at the 19-year-old's house and checked themselves for injuries. They tried to check for bullet holes on the car in the dark but didn't see any damage. They thought someone might have just been trying to scare them and went inside.
It wasn't until the next morning, when the teen's mother found bullet holes in the rear tire, hubcap and fender, that they reported the shooting to the sheriff's office.
The homeowner who shot at the teens has a different account of what happened early Saturday. When interviewed by deputies, the homeowner said he was woken up by a loud noise outside of his home and spotted a white car with its brake lights on in the street outside his house. That's when he grabbed his handgun and went outside. He recalled hearing someone say something to the effect of "did you get anything?" Then he said he stepped in front of the car and said not to move.
The car, he said, accelerated toward him. He fled from the street and shot at the car several times as it sped off.
The sheriff's office said the investigation is ongoing. In the news release, the sheriff's office warned homeowners to call 911 if they suspect someone breaking in and to avoid leaving the house to confront suspects. They also warned Pokémon Go users to avoid trespassing or driving while playing the game.
今回取り上げる表現は、“mugging”です。『ウィズダム英和辞典』(第３版、三省堂)を引いたところ、「(路上などでの)強盗」とありました。
Macmillan Dictionary.comでは、“an attack on someone in a public place in order to steal their money, jewellery, or other possessions”と定義されていました。
“mug”という単語が元になっていますが、こちらの動詞的用法の第１義には「(路上などでお金を奪おうと)〈人〉を襲う、襲って強奪する」とありました(『ウィズダム英和辞典』)。“mug”は、「襲う」という行動が強調されており、“steal”のようにただ「盗む」という意味に暴力的な行為が伴っている場合に用いられます。(Blue Sky)
“mug”は以前にも取り上げられております。ご覧ください。
