Gotta steal 'em all: 2 40-year-old men caught for stealing at least $333k of Pokemon cards and merchandise in US

Gotta steal 'em all: 2 40-year-old men caught for stealing at least $333k of Pokemon cards and merchandise in US

In the Pokemon world, the ultimate goal is for the player to catch all the creatures and become the best trainer.

But for some, the desire to acquire these fictional creatures goes beyond the realm of the game, leading to real-life consequences.

In February 2022, a gaming store in the United States was broken into, and the culprits allegedly stole US$250,000 (S$333,000) worth of Pokemon cards and merchandise, according to local media.

This amounted to nearly 3,000 packs of the Japanese trading cards, reported The Star Tribune on Wednesday, adding that over 2,824 sealed packs of new Pokemon cards and other Pokemon merchandise were taken during the robbery.

The initial cost of the products was just under US$150,000, however the sale value was around US$250,000, said store co-owner Eric Johnson in the report.

The two 40-year-old men, identified as Matthew James Cuypers Jr and Dustin Anthony Wittern, were reportedly caught on security footage breaking into Punch-Out Gaming store at Forest Lake in Minnesota.

Each of the men has received a felony charge for third-degree burglary, filed in Washington County last week, said the report.

The stolen items have reportedly not been recovered.

The store, which specialises in video gaming, also carries Pokemon and other trading cards, said Fox News in a report on Wednesday.

“We came in one morning and the alarms had never triggered or anything because they ended up breaking in through the back door of the neighbouring spot, then cutting holes through the wall and entering our two storage unit rooms,” said Mr Johnson in the report.

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“They were here for about three hours. If they would have opened the door from the storage room to our store, it would have triggered the motion sensors. The police station is only a couple blocks away, and they would have come.”

On Feb 10 2022, officers arrived at the store and learned that someone had forced entry overnight by breaking into a vacant store next door and cutting through the dry wall to get in, said the report, citing the criminal complaint.

The security footage showed Wittern crawling into the storage space. When he noticed that there was a camera, he tried to put a piece of paper over the lens, but failed, said Fox News.

He then used tape to affix the paper to the lens.

The report said that investigators were led to the two suspects after they left behind fingerprints and DNA during the robbery.

The DNA results took about 10 months to come back, said Mr Johnson.

In a March 2022 interview for an unrelated federal case for alleged meth distribution, Cuypers admitted to stealing cards from the store, said The Minnesota Star Tribune report, citing the complaint.

Cuypers said Wittern knew a buyer who wanted the cards, according to the charges, it added.

Cuypers allegedly admitted to breaking into the store while Wittern stayed outside, before Wittern drove a van to the buyer.

On Wednesday, the store posted on its Facebook page that the two men were in custody.

“After waiting over a year of us knowing who these guys were, they have finally started the court process,” said the post.

“Thank you to everyone who helped us out with this case. We appreciate those who gave us information and leads on who they are. And a BIG thank you to the community for standing behind us during those tough times!”

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.