Robbers Steal $100,000 Card from Manhattan Store
Pok?mon Card Market Expands... Crime Cases on the Rise
In the heart of New York City, a group of armed robbers wielding guns and hammers boldly stole collectibles related to the popular Japanese animation "Pok?mon" and fled the scene.
On January 14 (local time), NBC News and other outlets reported that three robbers broke into a Pok?mon store in central Manhattan, threatened employees and customers, and made off with high-value cards.
The crime took place around 6 p.m. and lasted about three minutes. Although there were about 50 people, including staff and customers, in the store at the time, they were unable to respond to the robbers who brandished handguns. Security camera footage captured the robbers, dressed in black, smashing display cases with hammers and taking out cards.
Rare Pok?mon card sold for 400 million KRW at a 2022 auction in the United States. Photo by Yonhap News
No injuries were reported as a result of the incident, but the store owner stated that about 100,000 dollars (approximately 147 million KRW) worth of merchandise was stolen. The most expensive single item was a card valued at around 30,000 dollars. Police are currently tracking the robbers who fled the scene after the crime.
This is not the first time Pok?mon-related thefts have occurred. The market for Pok?mon cards has seen a significant price surge in recent years, driven by both fandom and investment demand. Rare edition cards are traded like works of art or luxury watches, leading to an increase in crimes targeting them.
In July of last year, William Gilmore, who operates a Pok?mon collectibles specialty store in Massachusetts, revealed through social media that his store had been burglarized.
He said, "A robber cleaned out the store in just 30 seconds, stealing five rare Pok?mon cards and high-value items such as vintage boxes." The stolen cards included Charizard and Blastoise editions, and their value was estimated at between 100,000 and 113,000 dollars.
Security camera footage showed a suspect wearing a mask and hat breaking the door with a hammer and heading toward the display case at around 2:30 a.m. Although police launched an investigation, the suspect was not found.
In Japan, the home of Pok?mon, there have also been cases of crimes committed to raise funds for purchasing Pok?mon cards. In 2022, a 25-year-old unemployed man from Sapporo was arrested for using someone else's credit card to illegally buy about 1,000 Pok?mon cards from an online store.
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