Niantic has quietly removed a PokéStop located on Little Saint James — the private island formerly owned by Jeffrey Epstein — after renewed attention from Pokémon GO players sparked widespread discussion online.

The in-game location, reportedly tied to a large sundial structure on the island, had existed in Pokémon GO’s database for years without drawing much notice. That changed when players recently discovered the point of interest and began sharing screenshots across social media. Curiosity quickly escalated, with some users even spoofing their GPS locations to access the otherwise unreachable stop.

Pokémon GO’s map is built from a massive database of real-world landmarks, many of which originated from Niantic’s earlier AR title, Ingress. While the system has enabled millions of public artworks, parks, and monuments to become interactive locations in the game, it has also occasionally allowed controversial or inappropriate sites to slip through.

Little Saint James is private property and widely associated with serious criminal investigations tied to its former owner. Its presence in a family-friendly, globally popular mobile game raised questions about how location data is reviewed and moderated — particularly when it comes to sensitive or restricted areas.

Following the surge of attention, Niantic acted to remove the PokéStop from the game. The move underscores the ongoing challenge of maintaining a real-world map at Pokémon GO’s scale, where user submissions and legacy data can sometimes surface in unexpected ways.

While this unusual case is now resolved, it highlights a broader issue for location-based AR games: when the real world becomes the playground, even controversial history can inadvertently become part of the experience.

Source