Police responded to the Pasadena Best Buy early Wednesday after an employee reported that cameras showed someone inside the store. Storming in, officers found Patrick Keys, 45, and arrested him on suspicion of burglary.
There was no sign of forced entry, though, and nothing in his possession. It turned out he had hidden in the store at closing time in hopes of getting the drop on the Pokémon card drop anticipated for the next morning.
As reported by NBC Los Angeles' Karla Rendon: "At the time of the incident, a group of Pokémon fans had camped out outside the store in anticipation of the sale of a new set of cards."
"I was just here for some Pokémon drop, but I went to the restroom. Not even 15 minutes and there was cops everywhere," one woman who was camping outside said.
Here's footage of the arrest, from the NBC affiliate, showing numerous, heavily armed police with shields and dogs, clearly ready to take on Arceus.
The days of round-the-block queues for new gadgets, novels and collectibles are not over. Lately, add video cards to the list. Pokémon cards are "extremely lucrative," writes IGN's Cade Onder.
High-value Pokémon cards have sold for as high as $16 million, proving just how significant the market for these trading cards can be. This has led to frustration among some fans, as they simply want to collect and battle with their cards, but resellers make efforts to buy up stock and make them difficult or expensive to collect.
Previously:
• Pokémon Go narrated by David Attenborough: 'It is, of course, a bird.'
• Celebrate Pokémon's anniversary by paying $40 for 22-year-old Game Boy games
• Gotta Scam 'em all: father and son caught red-handed scamming Pokémon fans
• Two Los Angeles cops fired for ignoring robbery to chase a Snorlax in Pokémon GO
