North Carolina man arrested for failing to return 'Freddy Got Fingered' VHS tape in 2002
James Meyers (WSOC)

A North Carolina man was arrested this week for failing to return a VHS cassette he rented 14 years ago from a store that no longer exists.


James Meyers, of Concord, said he was driving his daughter to school Tuesday morning when a police officer pulled him over because his car's tail light was out, reported WSOC-TV.

The police officer took his driver's license, and when he came back he asked Meyers to step out of his vehicle.

“The officer said, 'I don’t know how to tell you this but there’s a warrant out for your arrest from 2002. Apparently you rented the movie "Freddy Got Fingered" and never returned it,'" Meyers said. "I thought he was joking."

Meyers said the officer agreed to let him take his daughter to school and then go to work if he promised to turn himself in to police later that day.

He assumed he would be able to straighten things out at the police department after work, but Meyers told the TV station he was surprised when officers placed him in handcuffs and brought him to the magistrate's office.

Meyers said he only vaguely remembers renting the 2001 movie starring Tom Green, who has heard about the arrest.

"Freddy Got Fingered" scores a lowly 11 percent critical rating on the movie website "Rotten Tomatoes," which says "a significant number of critics are calling Tom Green's extreme gross-out comedy the worst movie they have ever seen."

The family-owned video store where Meyers rented the cassette closed years ago.

The magistrate set an April 27 court date for Meyers, who said he can only hope the case is dismissed.

Watch this video report posted online by WSOC-TV: