Pokemon scammers arrested for using bags of paper to buy $320K worth of cards

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Police have arrested three people accused of stealing Pokemon cards by tricking the seller with bags full of paper instead of actual cards.

Japanese police say a group of three people scammed a collector in Tokyo out of around $320,000 by selling them three rare Pokémon cards for approximately 51 million yen.

Toru Morino, 38, Jun Takemura, 54, and Eiji Koda, 52, are suspected of gaining the victim’s confidence by initially showing them some genuine money. They then gave the victim a bag that was claimed to hold the full payment.

But after the exchange was completed, the buyer quickly realized something was off.

Instead of stacks of money, the bag was filled with bundles of paper designed to look like cash.

Pokemon card tricksters use bags of paper to buy cards

According to police, the event happened at a hotel in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward. The meeting was set up through someone the individuals knew.

Police have arrested all three suspects on suspicion of fraud. One suspect isn’t speaking, and the other two claim they weren’t involved.

This situation shows how risky trading expensive Pokémon cards has become, with rare cards fetching incredibly high prices globally.

In 2022, Pokémon card collectors became targets for thieves. One collector in France was robbed at gunpoint, losing a collection worth $15,000. Later that year, an elderly man had a collection valued at $500,000 stolen from his home near the water.

Pokemon card thefts are still happening, even in 2026. A recent incident in New York City involved a robbery at a Pokemon card store where three armed individuals stole $116,000 worth of cards. Authorities have only charged the person believed to have driven the getaway car so far.

Because valuable collectibles are selling for high prices, fraudsters are now more often targeting transactions involving significant amounts of cash exchanged directly between buyers and sellers.

This new scam highlights the incredible lengths fraudsters will go to, managing to turn something as simple as a paper bag into a scheme worth over $100,000.

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2026-03-18 21:48