By Dexerto | Created at 2026-09-05 11:23:57 | Updated at 2026-09-05 12:10:28
1 hour ago
A former Old School RuneScape developer has been sentenced after hacking into players’ accounts and selling their virtual gold on the black market for more than $400,000.
Andrew Lakeman, 32, formerly known as Jed Sanderson and better known to players of the MMO as “Mod Jed,” used his position at Jagex to access valuable accounts and steal their in-game wealth.
Jagex secretly set a trap for Mod Jed
Lakeman joined Jagex as a content developer in 2015, but came under suspicion three years later when the company noticed valuable items and gold disappearing from player accounts following suspicious account recoveries.
After initially believing the problem was a glitch, Jagex realized the person responsible was likely working inside the company and launched an investigation.
The developer restricted when accounts could be recovered and modified its firewall without telling employees, effectively setting a trap that allowed its IT team to trace the activity back to Lakeman’s devices and home address.
Lakeman denied responsibility when confronted and suggested his own account had been compromised, but was subsequently fired and reported to police.
Investigators found he had sold virtual gold and valuable in-game items obtained from other players’ accounts on the black market for more than $400,000.
JagexLakeman was sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work.
Searches also revealed Lakeman had banked more than $493,000 in cash from cryptocurrency dealers, although police did not specify whether all of that money came from stolen Old School RuneScape items.
Lakeman was arrested in July 2019 and later pleaded guilty to offences including theft by employee and unauthorized computer access with intent to commit other offences.
On September 3, Cambridge Crown Court sentenced him to three years in prison, suspended for two years. He was also ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and a 25-day rehabilitation activity requirement.
During the case, the Court of Appeal ruled that Old School RuneScape gold could be considered “property” under the Theft Act and was therefore capable of being stolen.
“Just because it’s virtual, doesn’t mean he shouldn’t face the full force of the law,” Detective Constable Andrew McKeane said.
“Given the rapid growth of online and virtual worlds, the justice system is going to have to keep pace and adapt to these new and emerging crimes.”
In more light-hearted OSRS news, back in August, one player went viral after spending two years levelling one of the game’s skills in the slowest way possible.
