Thousands of dollars worth of highly collectible Labubu figurines were recovered during a burglary investigation in San Bernardino County, authorities announced earlier this week.
In a news release, officials with the Chino Police Department said the discovery was made while searching an Upland residence of an unknown number of suspects believed to be involved in several burglaries at a local warehouse.
In all, 14 boxes of the furry little monsters, which are currently having a huge popular culture moment, worth an estimated $30,000 were recovered, police said.
While officers were executing the search warrant, one of the suspects attempted to run, but was quickly taken into custody.
Evidence found at the scene reportedly indicated that the sought-after Labubu figurines were being prepped for resale and shipment to locations across the country. Investigators noted that the collectibles are often sold for high prices online.
The customizable little monsters, created by Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung, are exclusively sold at Chinese-based Pop Mart online and typically cause quite a stir when new figurines are advertised, released and make their way to storefronts across the country.
The limited versions of the furry monsters can retail for as much as $150, while a child-sized Labubu was auctioned off for $150,000, the Los Angeles Times reported.
It’s not the first time thieves have gone after the collectibles.
A La Puente store had its entire stock of Labubus, worth around $7,000, stolen just last week, but the owner of One Stop Sales posted to Instagram that investigators with the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department were able to recover and return the items.
As for the most recent Labubu heist, all of the valuable inventory was recovered and returned to the owners.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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