A string of brazen thefts has hit the Southern California trading card community hard, with hundreds of thousands of dollars in cards stolen from different locations. In a recent armed robbery at RWT Collective in Los Angeles' Sawtelle neighborhood, two men, one brandishing a handgun, made off with approximately $500,000 in Pokémon cards from an employee's trunk, NBC Los Angeles reported.
Almost simultaneously, another theft occurred at Simi Sportscards in Simi Valley when thieves wielding what appeared to be a crowbar smashed display cases and looted tens of thousands of dollars' worth of Pokémon and sports trading cards. The owner of the store, Jake Miller, expressed his frustration to CBS News Los Angeles, saying, "It doesn't get any easier... It's the second time this has happened to us and it's very violating feeling. It makes you sick to your stomach that you do things the right way, you work hard, and someone comes in here and in the matter of three minutes takes it all from you."
The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating the potential connection between the thefts, considering the close timing and similar nature of the crimes. In a separate incident the prior month in Burbank, burglars managed to make away with $100,000 worth of merchandise, leaving store owners like Kiet Nguyen to speculate that these criminals had scouted the location in advance, according to a statement obtained by KTLA.
Another incident involved a pair of thieves who were eventually apprehended after a store owner recognized them as having sold stolen cards the previous month. This duo was found responsible for a storage unit burglary where $500,000 worth of trading cards were stolen, KTLA reported. These frequent heists have left the local trading card businesses in distress, as they face losses not only in inventory but also in the necessary funds for reparations and increased security measures.
The trading card industry has experienced a substantial increase in value over recent years, making these stores prime targets for thieves looking for a quick, high-value score. No arrests have been made in the latest rounds of theft, and the investigations remain ongoing as store owners and law enforcement work to understand if these crimes are part of a larger pattern of retail theft across the region.
