May 2, 2026
Anyone who knows anything about Pokémon cards knows you 'gotta catch 'em all,' but one particularly enthusiastic collector in Pasadena, Calif. might have taken that catch phrase a little too literally.
Police on Wednesday arrested a man who had hidden out in a closed Best Buy store, apparently hoping to gain an advantage from a planned card drop the next day. Police have arrested 45-year-old Patrick Keys for suspicion of burglary.
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There was no sign of forced entry at the store, indicating he may have been inside it when it closed. Keys were spotted on a live feed from inside the store at 1:00 a.m. by workers monitoring the closed-circuit feed. An employee with a key to the store let officers in.
He was arrested without incident.
"I was just here for some Pokémon drop, but I went to the restroom. Not even 15 minutes and there was cops everywhere," one woman who was camping outside the store for the next morning's drop told (1) KNBC in Los Angeles.
Pokécraze intensifies
Pokémon cards have been popular for years, but they've seen a resurgence in popularity as interest in trading cards has surged. Earlier this year, influencer Logan Paul sold his PSA 10-graded Pikachu Illustrator Pokémon trading card for nearly $16.5 million, a record amount. (Paul paid $5.27 million for the card in 2021.)
While virtually all trading cards are seeing price boosts, Pokemon is far and away the industry leader. As of last July, the value of those cards has increased 3,261% (2) in the past 20 years, far surpassing the S&P 500 and most other investment vehicles.
In the 12 months prior to that, the average Pokemon card saw a 46% increase in value.
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To put those numbers in comparison, the second most popular theme of collectible cards revolves professional American football. In that same 20 year period, the value of those cards has only increased 1,290%. Baseball cards gained 721%. The S&P? 421%.
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Camping out
To ensure they have the latest and greatest cards, collectors will frequently camp out overnight when new decks go on sale. Some will attempt to buy a store out immediately, in hopes of finding a rare card, which has caused considerable frustration on the part of both retailers and customers. (Many also offer the cards for resale on secondary markets like Ebay, usually at an inflated price point.)
To keep scalpers at bay, one store in Japan has started requiring customers to take a written (3) Pokemon quiz before they can buy expansion packs.
Two years ago, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam put a Pokemon card with ties to the famous Dutch artist up for sale. It had to stop selling (4) those after one day due to pandemonium. Scalpers swarmed the museum, fighting over merchandise.
Predictably, those cards quickly showed up on Ebay at exaggerated prices, which ranged from $70 to $485.
Article Sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.
NBC Los Angeles (1); Fortune (2); IGN (3); The New York Times (4)
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Chris Morris is a veteran journalist with more than 35 years of experience at many of the internet's biggest news outlets. In addition to his activities as a writer, reporter and editor, Chris is also a frequent panel moderator and speaker at major conferences, including CES and South by Southwest.
