Nearly $1 million in rare trading cards, including highly valued Pokémon cards, were stolen from a FedEx truck parked near a Southern California business that authenticates and grades the collectible items, according to police.
The theft is the latest in a string of heists involving Pokémon cards, which have exponentially increased in value in recent years.
The Santa Ana Police Department in Orange County said in a statement to ABC News on Tuesday that the heist occurred on Oct. 13 outside the Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) office in Santa Ana.
The hundreds of stolen cards are estimated to be worth a total of $963,000, according to police.
“However, the exact value of the stolen items has not yet been determined,” according to the Santa Ana police statement.
The cards belong to collectors from across the country who submitted them to the PSA to be authenticated and graded.
Two full pallets of collectible cards were stolen, and some cards on a third pallet were also swiped when thieves broke into a FedEx truck, according to police.
“The pallets contained various trading cards, including, but not limited to, sports cards and Pokémon cards,” according to the police statement.
As of Tuesday, no arrests have been announced in the memorabilia rip-off. Police said the investigation is ongoing.
The theft was first reported by The Athletic, which cited police sources saying the the FedEx truck was broken into during the 60 to 90 minutes the driver was away from the parked vehicle.
“We are aware of a theft involving a third-party shipping vehicle carrying PSA-graded items. We are working closely with law enforcement and the carrier as the investigation continues,” Collectors, the parent company of PSA, said in a statement to ABC News.
The company said it deactivated the certificates for the missing cards and has notified its “marketplace partners to be on the lookout for rare and serialized items.”
“Our customer service team has contacted affected customers directly and is arranging compensation based on fair market value,” the company said. “We understand the impact this has on collectors involved, many of whom see these cards as far more than a financial asset.”
FedEx also released a statement to ABC News, saying, “The security of our customers’ shipments is a top priority, and we are working with local law enforcement in their investigation. Further questions should be referred to local investigators.”
One victimized collector, known by his online handle, Sky-B Cards, issued a YouTube video statement, saying the 104 cards he submitted to PSA for grading were among the stolen items. He said he paid more than $8,000 to have the cards graded by PSA and that his cards were insured for more than $150,000.
“These were 104 cards that I’ve accumulated over two years,” Sky-B Cards said in the YouTube video. “There are many irreplaceable cards in here that I will never see again, and honestly that’s what hurts the most, outside of being absolutely financially destroyed here.”
The heist is the latest in a string of thefts in Southern California and elsewhere in the country of highly valued Pokémon cards, highlighting what appears to be an ever-growing demand for merchandise from the popular childhood card game.
In February, thieves broke into a collectibles shop in Anaheim, California, by cutting a hole through the wall from a neighboring shop they also broke into, stealing tens of thousands of dollars worth of Pokémon cards.
Captured on video surveillance cameras, the three thieves were seen grabbing hundreds of trading cards and bolting from the shop in less than 10 minutes.
In April, thieves staged a smash-and-grab heist at Elite Sports Cards in Chicago, stealing $100,000 in Pokémon cards, the store owner told ABC Chicago station WLS.
In an interview in April, Jared Mast, president of Mast Wealth Management Group, which deals in alternative investments including collectibles like Pokémon cards, told ABC News the value of Pokémon cards has risen sharply in the past year.
“I would say, collectively, over the last 12 months, things have gone up anywhere from 200 to 300%,” Mast said.
Mast explained that Pokémon card value has risen in three different waves over the last decade. First, in 2016, with the arrival of Pokémon Go, the popular mobile game based on the playing cards, and then again in 2019 and 2020, as a generation of celebrities like Logan Paul invested in the collectibles.
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