Grown Men Risking It All for Pokemon Cards
According to an article from NOLA.com, an assistant fire chief from Westwego, LA, was arrested for stealing $300 worth of Pokemon cards from a local Target over a few days. The man, identified as Justin Taylor, 38, used fake UPC codes to buy the boxes of cards at a cheaper price.
It is the latest example of someone overtaken with greed looking to pocket valuable Pikachus and Charizards. Recent thefts have occurred in Houston, Minnesota, and last year in Alabama by a corrections officer.
Westwego assistant fire chief arrested, accused of stealing Pokémon cards from Target https://t.co/0TVLFy7FOI
— NOLA.com (@NOLAnews) November 11, 2024
According to GemRate, Charizard was the most graded "player" last week, just ahead of Victor Wembanyama. The third-most graded was Pikachu. Charizard and Pikachu are the second and third-most graded players or characters ever, respectively, just behind Michael Jordan. As of this writing, Charizard cards have been graded 1,535,191 times, just about 14,000 behind Jordan.
This comes on the heels of the latest Pokemon release, Surging Sparks, one of the most anticipated releases in recent memory.
The popular collector Don Diego made a fun video of her search for a Surging Sparks box. After visiting a few stores, she found a box at a local card shop for $170. The most sought-after card is the Pikachu Foil, which sells for about $540.
However, the set is widely acclaimed for its colorful artwork and the number of different in-demand characters found in it.
One shouldn't expect the Pokemon hysteria to settle down anytime soon as yet another anticipated release, Prismatic Evolutions, is out on Jan. 17, 2025. Hopefully, people will learn that a couple hundred dollars, or thousands for that matter, is not worth jail time and a ruined career.
