Police arrested a New Bedford man this week in connection with the theft of over $115,000 worth of Pokemon cards from a city collectibles shop earlier this month.
Richard Jovahn Nunes, 24, pleaded not guilty to six counts of receiving stolen property worth over $1,200 during his arraignment in New Bedford District Court on Tuesday, according to court records.
The charges stem from the theft of two vintage Pokemon card booster boxes, five Charizard cards and one Blastoise card from 1st Edition Collectibles on July 8, New Bedford police said in a press release Wednesday.
How the suspect was caught
The local card collector community reacted to the theft by rallying behind 1st Edition Collectibles, 1st Edition Collectibles co-owner Filipe Andre said. Many resolved to keep an eye out for attempted sales of cards matching the stolen items in the hopes of catching the thief.
The community’s support paid off for 1st Edition Collectibles on Monday when Collectible Tags — a collectibles shop in Manchester, New Hampshire — notified New Bedford police that a suspect had tried to sell a Pokemon card box matching one of the stolen items, Andre and police said.
Later that day, the same suspect tried to sell different Pokemon cards matching another stolen item at Dream Collectors — a collectibles shop in Taunton, Andre and police said. Again, the store notified police of the attempted sale.
“Based on the rarity and value of the booster boxes involved, detectives determined that it was highly unlikely the same person would possess both without being connected to the original theft,” New Bedford police wrote in the release.
Detectives soon identified the suspect as Nunes, and New Bedford and Taunton police arrested him in Taunton, New Bedford police said. At the time of his arrest, Nunes had an active warrant out for his arrest out of Taunton District Court on felony charges.
The investigation then led detectives to search a Dartmouth apartment at which Nunes has been staying, New Bedford police said. There, they found a shoebox containing the rest of the stolen items.
What this means for 1st Edition Collectibles
Andre said he and the shop’s other co-owners are incredibly grateful that Collectible Tags and Dream Collectors reported the attempted sales instead of accepting the items.
“People don’t realize that this is a community,” he said. “All the local shops see each other at conventions and talk to each other. Those shop owners are all great guys, and we’re lucky the community is the way it is.”
Though aspects of the break-in and theft seemed to indicate the thief was familiar with 1st Edition Collectibles, none of the shop’s owners recognized Nunes, Andre said. It is unclear whether police believe he was the person who broke into the store and stole the cards, or whether they think another suspect was involved.
Two of the recovered card boxes were opened, which lowers their monetary value, Andre said. Still, the store’s owners are relieved and amazed that police managed to recover all of the items.
After the theft, members of the local card collector community rushed to donate money to support 1st Edition Collectibles, Andre said. Uncomfortable with the idea of just taking their money without providing anything in return, the shop’s co-owners created two unique t-shirts that supporters could buy as a means of helping the store recover lost revenue.
But now that all the stolen items have been recovered, 1st Edition Collectibles plans to donate the revenue from the t-shirts, Andre said. The shop’s co-owners haven’t settled on an organization they want to give the money to yet, but they plan to announce their chosen beneficiary soon.
New Bedford police are still investigating the theft. They ask that anyone with information about it provide an anonymous tip by calling 508-99-CRIME or making a report on their website.
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