During a drug bust, police discovered $2 million in cash and a stash of Pokemon cards likely worth hundreds of thousands. Police allege the collectables were used to launder money by a drug syndicate.
TCG collectors and players all know rare Pokemon cards are invaluable, causing much drama in the past in playgrounds and card stores.
But now some limited print collectables are worth literal thousands of dollars and have clearly become more than a simple children’s toy.
Who could have known these cards, the same cards kids grew up playing with and collecting, would one day be used allegedly launder money for drugs?
According to The Daily Telegraph, Australian police have seized Pokemon cards “worth hundreds of thousands” and more than $2 million in cash as part of a drug bust from a “unit block… allegedly used as a safehouse by a drug syndicate.”
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Police are getting experts on the case to accurately estimate the value of the Pokemon cards. There’s no way the police knew the value of these cards at first glance.
The Daily Telegraph didn’t state which exact cards were found, or what condition the cards were found it. Pokemon trading cards do have insane value, but they’re haggle based and incredibly dependent on their condition.
Because of this value increase, they’ve become somewhat of a hot bed for crime — two men were shot at by police for allegedly stealing Pokemon cards in the United States earlier in 2022, while collections in the six-figures are sometimes the target of stealing.