Thieves Ignored Jewelry and Cleared Out "This" Instead... Some Single Cards Have Sold for 20 Billion Won

Pokemon cards worth over 14,000 dollars per piece

An incident occurred at a collectibles store in the United States in which a large number of high-priced Pokemon cards were stolen.

According to Fox News and other local media on the 23rd (local time), at around 3:00 a.m. on the 18th, four thieves broke into the collectibles store "Do-We Collectibles" in Anaheim, California, and fled after stealing Pokemon cards worth 180,000 dollars (about 260 million won).

Investigations found that they first smashed the glass door of the insurance office next to the store and then damaged the wall adjoining the store to gain entry. CCTV installed in the store captured the men smashing the glass display cases and grabbing hundreds of trading cards in less than 10 minutes. Among the stolen cards were some high-end items reportedly worth as much as 10,000 dollars (about 14.4 million won) each.

Inside the Duwi Keollekteobeulseu store where a Pokemon card theft occurred. Duwi Keollekteobeulseu

Store employee Vincent Bui said, "It appears the suspects visited the store during the day to scout the layout in advance." Store owner Duy Pham said, "This line of business is always a target for crime," adding, "I expected something like this might happen someday, but I was still deeply shocked when it actually did." The store is reported to have suffered two break-ins over the past six months.

During the investigation, it was confirmed that one of the suspects dropped a mobile phone inside the store with the screen unlocked, and the device has been secured as evidence. Police believe the suspects fled the scene in a dark-colored sedan and are tracking their whereabouts.

Meanwhile, Pokemon cards, which feature various characters from the popular Japanese animated series Pokemon, are among the most sought-after trading items among collectors in the United States and around the world. Their value varies depending on collectors' preferences and the rarity of the cards. Some cards trade for anywhere from several thousand dollars to several million dollars, and there was even a case where social media influencer Logan Paul purchased a rare Pokemon card for 16.5 million dollars (about 23.78 billion won).