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A Winnipeg store owner lost about 20,500 Pokemon cards in a September theft. The incident highlights a surge in Pokemon card thefts across Canada and the US.
A Winnipeg store owner says she is done selling Pokemon cards after a theft in September cost her about $2,500 and roughly 20,500 cards. Terri Settle, who owns Terri's Trinkets and Toys in Winnipeg's north end, said someone crawled through a vent, smashed a hole in her store's wall and fled with the cards on the night of Sept. 8.
Winnipeg store hit by Pokemon theft
Settle said she thought she had solved her Pokemon card theft problem in August. That was when someone walked into her store, picked up a box full of Japanese cards and ran away. A worker caught up to the thief and got the cards back.
Settle then zip-tied the box to a shelf. But the knots were not tight enough. Two weeks later, the September theft occurred. Now she plans to stop selling the cards after her remaining stock is sold.
She said the theft is just not worth the risk. Settle also said many Pokemon theft victims do not insure their collections because it can be costly, so she does not expect to get her money back.
She added that many people in this kind of business would say the same.
Pokemon card thefts reported across Canada
The Winnipeg theft is among a string of Pokemon card thefts reported across Canada and the United States in recent years, amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses.
In a July 2024 robbery in Ontario, the Durham Regional Police Service said a store worker was struck in the head by someone fleeing with three Pokemon cards worth roughly $5,000.
Alberta RCMP Cpl. Mathew Howell said a central Alberta store owner lost a binder of cards worth roughly $18,000 in a theft last month. The costliest card in the deck showed the black-coloured, cat-like Umbreon ex monster.
Mounties are asking Albertans to look out for Pokemon cards in online storefronts. Howell said people should be vigilant on Facebook Marketplace and similar sites where cards are sold, especially the rarer ones.
He noted there is no easy identifier for each specific card, though some of the rarer cards have an identification number.
Nostalgia drives Pokemon card demand
University of Alberta professor Utku Akkoc said the robberies are not surprising. Akkoc, who teaches in the university's business department, said there is a nostalgic appeal for some people.
He said even as a kid he had Pokemon cards and watched the original Pokemon show with his siblings. For people above a certain age, it reminds them of those good old days, he said.
Akkoc said people purchase Pokemon cards to relive those memories. Research shows that when people feel nostalgic, they also spend or would like to spend money, he said.
In the roughly 30 years since Japanese video game developer Game Freak Inc. debuted two Pokemon games on Nintendo Game Boy, the franchise has taken over the globe with animated shows, mobile games, highly coveted trading cards and other merchandise.
The video and card games see players assuming the role of trainer of a series of monsters called Pokemon. The monsters battle other monsters in the card and video games. Each monster has its strengths and weaknesses.
The iconic yellow-coloured, mouse-like Pikachu monster, for example, is a fast flyer but not good at defending itself against attacks on the ground.
Akkoc said if there is a limited supply of some cards, naturally the price of the monster will go up.
Record sale highlights Pokemon card value
Earlier this year, social media personality Logan Paul sold a card called the Pikachu Illustrator for a record US $16.5 million. Paul had purchased the card in 2021 for more than US $5 million.
Guinness World Record said on its website the card was designed by the original creator of Pikachu. Following this sale, it now becomes the overall most expensive trading card sold at auction, Guinness said.
The card was never produced to sell to the public, unlike the regular Pikachu card. The Pikachu Illustrator was handed out as a prize during an illustration contest organized by a Japanese magazine in 1998.
Companies such as the U.S.-based Professional Sports Authenticator rate trading cards on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being pristine mint condition. Paul's card received a 10 from PSA.
PSA said on its website a perfect card has various factors. Attributes include four perfectly sharp corners, sharp focus and full original gloss, its website said. A PSA Gem Mint 10 card must be free of staining of any kind, but an allowance may be made for a slight printing imperfection, if it does not impair the overall appeal of the card.
Pokemon Cards Winnipeg Theft Terri Settle Canada Crime Logan Paul PSA Grading Game Freak
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