Southern California Police Are Trying to Work Out if Multiple Burglaries Involving Trading Card Businesses Are Linked

Southern California constabulary are investigating a question of akin burglaries involving trading paper businesses successful a bid to found whether they are linked.

Thieves made disconnected with thousands of dollars' worthy of trading cards implicit the weekend, targeting a trading paper store successful Simi Valley, California, successful the aboriginal hours of Sunday morning, January 4.

As reported by KTLA, the thieves targeted uncommon Pokémon and sports trading cards astatine Simi Sports Cards, making disconnected with "almost each card" successful conscionable 3 minutes. You tin spot the robbery instrumentality spot successful the Instagram footage, below.

Owner Jake Miller said: “They took azygous cards from our amusement cases [after] busting them open. We person 5 show cases successful here, and they were each afloat — astir each paper was stolen. It’s respective 100 cards, arsenic good arsenic immoderate sealed boxes."

The store isn't definite of the nonstop magnitude taken, but Miller estimates it'll outgo astir $50,000 to enactment things close and upgrade the store's information systems.

"Card stores successful greater Los Angeles and Ventura County are being deed RELENTLESSLY and we were erstwhile again unfortunate this weekend," reads the Instagram post. "Sunday greeting astatine 3:30am we were breached into by a radical of 5 thieves who stole astir of our singles inventory. Simi Valley was erstwhile known for instrumentality and order, what is happening?"

The Simi Valley Police Department said it was alert of akin burglaries involving trading paper businesses that occurred implicit the play successful surrounding communities. "SVPD Property Crimes Detectives are moving intimately with neighboring instrumentality enforcement agencies to find whether these incidents whitethorn beryllium connected," it said successful a connection published online.

That's a notation to a antheral who reportedly purchased a uncommon Pokémon paper "worth six figures" from a store successful LA's Sawtelle vicinity and, that aforesaid day, was tracked to his conveyance and robbed astatine gunpoint. It's unclear whether the 2 incidents are related, oregon so if either transgression is connected to the aforesaid thieves who targeted a antithetic store successful Burbank conscionable past month, stealing $100,000 successful merchandise.

This caller spate of thefts is conscionable the latest illustration of however Pokémon cards are present considered high-value goods by thieves. In December 2024, it was reported that Japanese transgression syndicates were present utilizing Pokémon cards to launder money. And successful the U.S., this is conscionable the latest incidental akin to galore others implicit the past 12 months. Until Pokémon's popularity fades — and there's nary motion it'll bash that anytime soon, with a large caller question of games expected adjacent twelvemonth — it seems apt this volition continue.

Anyone who whitethorn person accusation related to the burglary oregon who observed suspicious enactment successful the country is encouraged to interaction the Simi Valley Police Department: 805-583-6950.

Image credit: Simi Sports Cards Instagram.

Vikki Blake is simply a newsman for IGN, arsenic good arsenic a critic, columnist, and advisor with 15+ years acquisition moving with immoderate of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's besides a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her astatine BlueSky.