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Vancouver police say they have arrested a man accused of robbing people of high-value Pokémon cards.
Police said that officers have responded to five incidents since March 23, in which all five victims met with a man to sell cards, usually through Facebook Marketplace.
Some of the cards are reportedly worth thousands of dollars.
“The suspect would arrange to meet sellers in a public place and, instead of buying the cards, would allegedly use bear spray on the victims, steal the cards, and run off,” VPD Staff Sgt. Ryan Campbell said in a statement.
On March 27, Vancouver police set up an opportunity to sell the suspect Pokémon cards and arrested him when he showed up.
Vancouver police think there may be additional victims who have not yet come forward.
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“We are anticipating that we will be recommending charges here in the near future,” Campbell told Global News on Thursday.
“One thing I’m also happy to mention is that as part of our investigation, we were successful in locating two of the cards.”
Police said that if someone is meeting with another person to buy or sell something, they can always use the Safe Exchange Location outside the front door of the Vancouver police headquarters at 2120 Cambie Street.
There has been a spate of Pokémon card robberies around Canada in the past year, including at the Everything J & J store in New Westminster, where thieves made off with cards worth thousands on Jan. 19.
Calgary police said in November they were engaged in an ongoing investigation into Pokémon card thefts, while RCMP in Fort McMurray, Alta., said last August they had made an arrest after $20,000 in cards were reported stolen.
In addition, a collectibles store in Abbotsford was targeted in March. Video captured thieves ransacking the store for about two minutes, making off with approximately $30,000 worth of Pokémon cards.
–with files from The Canadian Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
