Video shows Pokémon card thieves smash into N.J. shop, stuff collectibles into trash bag
Video shows a gang of Pokémon card thieves smashing display cases at a New Jersey hobby store and filling a trash bag with thousands of dollars worth of collectibles, according to police.
Rochelle Park police said masked thieves broke into Big Pack Hobby Shop on W. Passaic St. at around 3 a.m. Thursday, using a hammer to smash through the glass front door and cases.
Owner Pablo Rancier said the thieves got away with $40,000-$50,000 worth of Pokémon cards and merchandise.
"Loaded up as much as they could, and they were in and out in under like two minutes," he said.
Rancier said he got an alert about the burglary and rushed over, but the store was already ransacked and the suspects were gone.
"It's definitely gotten really expensive. Like, some of the cards that were stolen today were in the thousands," he said.
Pokémon card crimes possibly linked
Big Pack Hobby Shop is not the only trading card shop that has been targeted, since the rising value of Pokémon cards has made them more desirable to criminals.
Last week, a Queens man was charged with allegedly helping steal over $100,000 worth of Pokémon cards in two armed robberies in New York City. During one of the robberies in January, masked men robbed The Trainer Court in Lower Manhattan at gunpoint in front of a store full of customers and staff.
Police were looking into whether there's any connection between those incidents and the Rochelle Park burglary.
"It seems to be teams that are working together. They were very organized in the way they worked yesterday. So they definitely could be more of a ring," said Captain James DePreta with the Rochelle Park Police Department.
Trading card shop will up security
Since the break-in, Big Pack Hobby Shop's management said they plan to increase security and reinforce the glass door.
In the meantime, Rancier said he's been getting an outpouring of support from loyal customers.
"If anything, it makes me want to keep going," he said.
