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“Gotta catch ’em all” is meant to be a childhood slogan about collecting fantasy creatures, not a real-world crime spree. But in a brazen robbery that stunned New York’s trading card community, armed men appeared to take the Pokémon mantra far too literally, storming a Manhattan card shop and making off with rare collectables worth over $100,000.The robbery took place around 6:45 pm (local time) on Wednesday at Poké Court, a newly opened store on West 13th Street, an area better known for luxury boutiques and exclusive clubs. Three men entered the shop, and one of them immediately pulled out a gun and pointed it at customers and staff, store owner Courtney Chin was quoted as saying by the New York Times. Another suspect pulled a curtain across the front of the store and stood guard to stop anyone from leaving.Security footage shows two of the men smashing a locked display case with a hammer and grabbing high-value Pokémon cards and sealed packs before stuffing them into backpacks. Chin said the store keeps its most valuable items in the case, including rare and professionally authenticated cards.“They started systemically taking the items that had really large price tags, really high values,” Chin said, adding that the stolen items included a first-edition Charizard card worth about $15,000, as per the New York Times. Products inside the case were priced between $400 and $18,000, according to Peter Du, the store’s partnerships manager.The men, dressed in black, also took an unknown amount of cash from the register and stole a phone from a 27-year-old woman, police said. The entire incident lasted about three minutes, and no one was injured. No arrests have been made so far, and the investigation is ongoing, according to the New York Police Department, reported NBC News.The robbery occurred during Poké Court’s first community event since opening in November. Around 50 people were inside the store for a free arts-and-crafts workshop focused on customising Pokémon card display cases. Chin said she was shocked the shop was targeted on the night of the event. “It’s a beautiful place. It’s a community space, and we obviously want to keep it safe and bright and cozy and welcoming,” she said.A heightened police presence was seen outside the store the following day, with broken glass still visible on the smashed display case. Supporters of the store sent snacks and supplies, a gesture that content creator Keem Kim described as reflecting the spirit of the Pokémon community, as per the New York Times.The Manhattan robbery is the latest in a growing string of Pokémon card thefts across the United States. At least $300,000 worth of Pokémon cards were stolen from a California shop earlier this month, while a Massachusetts store lost more than $100,000 worth of rare cards in July, according to the New York Times. NBC News also reported recent incidents in Los Angeles, including a burglary in Burbank involving around $100,000 in merchandise and a separate robbery where a customer’s Pokémon collection valued at roughly $300,000 was stolen.Experts say the surge in thefts reflects the rising value of trading cards. Corey Williams, an assistant professor of economics at Shippensburg University, said, as quoted by the New York Times, that the pandemic fuelled renewed interest in Pokémon, with some collectors treating rare cards as low-cost investments. The weaponisation of monetary value, he noted, has made such items increasingly attractive targets for criminals.Store managers say many card shops are now rethinking security, including limiting displays of high-value cards or moving to appointment-only visits, as the risk of theft continues to grow.As investigators sift through security footage and hunt for leads, the slogan seems to have taken on a new, unintended meaning. This time, it’s not collectors but the police who are under pressure to “catch them all” — and bring the stolen Pokémon cards back where they belong. Go to Source
