Vancouver police arrested a man on April 1st on suspicion of stealing expensive Pokémon cards. According to the announcement, police have been responding to five incidents involving the buying and selling of Pokémon cards since March 23.
In each case, the victims met a man they had connected with through Facebook Marketplace for the purpose of selling cards. The transactions appeared to be perfectly normal at first glance. The suspect’s modus operandi was to meet victims in public places, pretend to buy cards, spray them with bear spray, steal the cards, and flee.
Some of the stolen cards were reportedly worth several thousand dollars. Police contacted the suspect online on March 27 and arranged a meeting under the guise of a Pokémon card transaction. They arrested the suspect when he showed up at the designated location. According to reports, the suspect is in his 20s and police believe he acted alone. Police believe there are other victims and are urging them to come forward. They also recommend using the well-lit, security-camera-equipped “Safe Exchange Location” near the main entrance of Vancouver Police Headquarters (2120 Cambie St. Vancouver) when buying, selling, or exchanging goods with strangers.
Incidents targeting Pokémon cards have been occurring frequently across Canada recently. In Metro Vancouver, a card shop in New Westminster was robbed in January of this year, and another shop in Abbotsford was targeted in March. In Alberta, incidents were reported last year in Calgary and Fort McMurray, with millions of dollars’ worth of cards stolen.