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Dota 2 Player Scores 32 Kills to Convince Police to Release His Teammates
Nuengnara "23savage" Teeramahanon, a player for Xipto Esports, says police entered his team's Dota 2 bootcamp in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and handcuffed three players. According to the Thai player, he had to play a match in front of the officers and scored 32 kills with Kez before his teammates were released.
23savage shared the story in a Facebook post. "My team had just finished practice, and we were on our phones when a group of investigators from Kuala Lumpur entered the house, took our passports and phones, cut off the internet, and shut down the computers," he wrote.
Players Were Handcuffed for Around Two Hours
Along with 23savage, Saieful "Fbz" Ilham and Chon Kien "Oli" Chan were reportedly handcuffed. For approximately two hours, the officers questioned them about their jobs and whether they were really professional players.
Things began to change when one of the officers, who was wearing a France national team jersey with Olise's name and the number 11 on the back, said he knew Dota 2 and Fnatic. 23savage then showed him his Instagram profile. The officer recognized Ms. Puiyi, a Malaysian influencer who appeared in one of the photos.
"After that, the investigators started to believe I really was a professional esports player and a public figure," 23savage said. According to him, the atmosphere became more relaxed from that point on."
23savage Says 32 Kills Convinced the Police
Even after showing his profile, 23savage wanted to know when he could get back to practice and competition. He says the officers removed only his handcuffs and allowed him to play a match to demonstrate his skills.
"I opened Dota to show the Malaysian police how I played. One of them sat down and watched me play Kez. I finished that match with 32 kills, and then the police believed me."
According to the player, the officers then removed his teammates' handcuffs and allowed the team to resume its activities. But the story had one final twist involving some food at the bootcamp.
"They even took my Nutella and ate two whole jars, those bastards!" the player joked. Despite the incident, 23savage ended his post by saying, "But it's fine. I consider it a good experience."
23savage did not explain why the police had entered the bootcamp. Although he reiterated in the comments that the story was true, the incident remains based on his account, with no independent public confirmation from Malaysian authorities.
Who Is 23savage in Dota 2?
Despite having to prove his identity to the police, 23savage is far from an unknown name in competitive Dota 2. The Thai player has represented major organizations including Fnatic, T1, and Talon Esports, with whom he finished third at Riyadh Masters 2023. He also made history in ranked play as the first player in the world to reach 12,000 MMR in 2021 and 13,000 MMR in 2022.
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Featured image credit: Escore News
