We could say that those who live by the jemmy, crowbar and balaclava die by the jemmy, crowbar and balaclava. But we won't because even Rockstar, those riders of the gaming crime wave, have become the latest victims of pilfering software pirates.

Just as with Halo 2 and Half-Life 2 before, some deviant sort has pilfered the game and set it up for download on various websites along with copies of the manual and even parts of the packaging.

No-one seems sure of the origin of the leak but today Rockstar UK have issued a firm statement: "The proper authorities are investigating the theft and are continuing to investigate all possible leads to ensure there is no further dissemination of our creative content. Downloading, possession and distribution of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, including making the game available on the internet, is theft."

Rockstar also went on to assert that "the launch date of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas remains the same. The game will be on store shelves in North America on 26 October and in Europe on 29 October".

Rockstar have also asked that anyone who finds info on or links to the unauthorised downloads, scans or videos should contact them at .

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is still set to be released for PS2 on 29 October, with a PC version to follow in mid-2005