Pokémon cards are no laughing matter. Some go for hundreds and thousands of dollars, and there are some serious collectors out there. One such collector was just a victim of a real-life heist and had a bunch of valuable cards stolen.
Being a Pokémon collector is not the safest occupation, as collector Yves Bruynen had to find out the hard way earlier this January when robbers broke into his store and stole items worth over $200,000.
This was a real-life heist that took place at his store in Belgium, with Wi-Fi jammers, headsets and everything. Now, Bruynen is offering a €10,000 reward for anyone who has information on the robbers and can help him get his items back safe and sound.
Pokémon Heist Successful: Victim Offers Bounty For Information
Yves Bruynen is a well-known Pokémon card collector who even managed to get his hands on a PSA 10 Charizard card worth half a million dollars. He owns a dedicated Pokémon shop in Hoogstraten, Belgium, and this shop was the victim of a break-in.
Not only were cards stolen, according to Voice of Europe, but the robbers also took figurines and decorations, knowing exactly which items to go for. The robbers knew what they were doing, targeting the older and more expensive items within the shop, even knowing exactly which shelves they had to break into to get the items they wanted.
While you might think this is the biggest Pokemon heist ever, in 2022 62-year-old Christopher Polydorou had his card collection worth $500,000 stolen.
Thankfully, there is video footage of the heist, which could help out with the investigation. Bruynen told French news outlet LeFigaro that in the video you could see the robber "enter the store with big bags in hand. They targeted the expensive products and left the newer, cheaper ones behind."
Just look at the shelf where the Japanese boxes were, it has been plundered. They left the other boxes. They knew exactly where to go, you can see them heading straight for the cabinets where the exclusive products were.
After the events took place, an estimated $200,000 worth of items were stolen from the store, with Bruynen putting up a €10,000 bounty for anyone who has any information on the heist.
While the most expensive items were stolen from the store, they're also the most rare, which Bruynen believes could mean that it will be difficult to sell without raising suspicion.