Oklahoma man accused of stealing $12,000 in Pokémon cards
09/12/2022 5:29 pm PDT
ST. LOUIS (TCD) -- A 24-year-old man from Tulsa, Oklahoma, was recently charged after allegedly stealing over $12,000 in Pokémon cards last year and trying to sell them in Texas.
On Oct. 11, 2021, a Crestwood patrol officer noticed a shattered glass door in front of Yeti Gaming on Watson Road, according to a news release from the Crestwood Police Department. Upon further investigation, authorities reportedly noticed blood and fingerprints on broken glass display cases, and DNA was collected from the scene.
Video surveillance revealed a suspect, later identified as Nicholas Garrison, using a hammer to break the glass display cases. He allegedly stole $12,257.50 worth of items and fled.
Just 10 days later, on Oct. 21, 2021, police said someone was arrested in Bedford, Texas, for selling stolen gaming cards similar to the ones taken from Yeti Gaming.
According to police, Garrison was found with a large amount of Pokémon and sports cards during a traffic stop in Dallas. But at the time, local authorities in Texas reportedly did not know about the burglaries.
According to police, a detective was able to collect the cards from the suspect’s car in Texas, and Garrison was booked into the Madison County, Illinois, detention center.
Crestwood Detectives reportedly executed a search of Garrison's cellphone, linking him to the area of Yeti Gaming at the time of the burglary. Police said authorities also recovered his search history, which included, "Missouri directions," "card stores near me," and "Yeti Gaming."
During the search of his phone, authorities reportedly found that Garrison messaged multiple people on Facebook, bragging about the incident and offering to sell Pokémon cards.
On May 9, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office reportedly denied a felony charging warrant application from the Crestwood Police Department pending DNA samples and lab results from Garrison.
Crestwood detectives reportedly kept track of Garrison’s whereabouts, and eventually, police said Garrison was accused of burglaries again out of McPherson, Kansas.
On June 9, Crestwood Detectives drove to Kansas and gathered DNA samples from Garrison. Police said after providing the samples, Garrison admitted to committing the burglaries he was accused of.
On July 20, the St Louis County Crime Lab was notified that the DNA collected at Yeti Gaming matched to Garrison.
A couple months later, on Saturday, Sept. 10, Garrison was charged with second-degree burglary, stealing $750 or more, and first-degree property damage, KMOV-TV reports.
St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell told KMOV, "Pokémon cards may seem like a trivial target, but there is nothing trivial about charges like burglary and felony theft."
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