Pokemon Go Players Visiting Poke Stop-Rich Cemeteries In Modesto By The Hundreds

MODESTO (CBS13) - It's a game people can't stop playing. The new game Pokemon Go has exploded in popularity in just days.

Pokemon Go players are finding critters everywhere, including some places that many consider inappropriate for gaming, like a cemetery.

"Families are number one in this cemetery, not game players, that's not what we're here for," says Timothy Copenhaver, superintendent for Pioneer Cemetery in Modesto.

The cemetery, along with others on Scenic Drive in Modesto, seems to be hot spots for Pokémon players

"We have them everywhere," says player Robert Dies. "It's a great place for Poké Stops."

With their heads buried in their phones, Pokemon Go users are walking around the cemetery at night and sitting in their cars hoping to catch critters. Brendon McClure and 9-year-old Aaron are on a mission, unfazed by the gravestones around them.

"If there weren't so many Poke Stops here, there wouldn't be so many people," says McClure.

But Copenhaver says the numbers are getting out of hand.

"I came in here the other night and we had probably 60 cars and probably two, three, 400 people here," he said.

Copenhaver adds players are leaving behind trash, I was walking on the graves of peoples' loved ones, and being a disruption to funeral services.

"We have families that come out here for the quietness, the peace, and to sit with their loved ones. And when you have something like this going on, it's very disrespectful," says Copenhaver.

"If I had a loved one buried there, I wouldn't want someone playing a game in a sacred place," says Valerie VanValkenburg.

On Wednesday night, Modesto police had to be brought in to help remove crowds off private property.

"The game does not change general laws of trespassing," says Chris Adams with Modesto Police. "It's important to be aware of your surroundings."

But Pokemon Go players say they try to be as respectful as possible.

"If people won't destroy or tag things, not sure why it's such a big deal. Just stay off grass and stay off people's family members," says McClure.

The app's creator, Niactic, has set up a way to ask for the removal of specific stops in the app.

The cemetery has put in a request to be removed, but they have not received a response back