On the night of Wednesday, January 14th, 2026, a shocking crime unfolded that would shake NYC’s Pokémon community to its core.
Three males wearing facemasks entered The Poké Court, a Pokémon-themed card game store in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. The three suspects, wearing anime-themed backpacks, arrived armed with a gun and hammers. They proceeded to keep the staff and customers of the store held at gunpoint while smashing the glass displays and stealing an Unlimited Edition Fossil Box, an Unlimited Johto Box, a Japanese Staryu card, A Japanese Charizard card, a 1st edition Charizard card, and many more items in the store along with cash. The robbery was over in less than three minutes, as stated by one of the employees from the store.
The stolen items are believed to be worth more than $100,000.
The armed robbery took place around 6:45 PM during The Poké Court’s Top Loader Decorating Night, a free community-run arts and crafts event hosted by The Poké Court and Alcremie Sundae from 4pm to 7pm. About 40 customers were present when the robbery occurred – fortunately, no one was hurt and no injuries were reported. Unfortunately, the three suspects are still at large as of writing.
The shocking crime is a troubling aspect of the current craze for pop culture collectibles – and the emphasis on their value. The recent auction of Logan Paul’s Charizard – valued at more than $5 million – highlighting the astronomical prices that simple Pokemon cards are going for. That some thugs would interrupt a peaceful hobby gathering for an armed robbery sounds like a scene from a Safdie Brothers movie…but it really happened right on 13th Street.
On The Poké Court’s Instagram, they are asking for help to find the stolen items, which have PSA certification numbers on the protective case the cards are stored in. If they are seen or sold anywhere, they request that you contact the police and also contact The Poké Court. On Their instagram as a story, you will also see the cards that are stolen to help identify them.
