A Costa Mesa man was arrested Thursday after detectives linked him to a theft of tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of popular collectible anime cards.
The victim called officers to investigate a theft from his vehicle on Stizza Avenue, according to the Irvine Police Department, and reported that about $45,000 in Pokémon and other cards had been stolen.
“Pikachu was definitely not happy that his friends were taken,” Irvine PD joked in a statement posted on social media. “Detectives found a clue hotter than Charizard when they discovered the suspect was selling stolen cards online.”
Police soon identified the suspect as 53-year-old Paul David Hastings of Costa Mesa.
Details are limited, but Irvine PD shared a video of Hastings’ arrest. The footage shows Hastings with his hands behind his back, sitting next to an officer in the back of a cruiser.
“Do you have any Pokémon cards?” the officer asks Hastings.
“No,” Hastings says.
“Dang, I was hoping to catch them all,” replied the officer.
The Irvine Police Department did not provide further details on the suspect’s booking, but noted that he was “captured faster than you could throw a poké ball.”
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