Suspects could face four years in prison for Pokemon card robbery

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) demanded four years in prison against three men from Lelystad for stealing expensive Pokemon cards in a house robbery. The robbers locked the victim in the hallway closet.

The victim from Kampen was selling the cards, with an estimated total value of 48,000 euros. Two potential buyers visited him on 16 December 2020. He let them in, and they shoved him into the closet and locked him in. The two men made off with his cards. According to the OM, 29-year-old Sjagalio K. and 29-year-old Bart G. were the two robbers. The two Lelystad men's cellphones pinged on masts in Kampen around the time of the robbery. The police also found finger and palm prints of both suspects on the closet door in the victim's hallway.

According to the OM, the third suspect, Fahad al-A., is the mastermind behind the robbery. The victim had contact with a Michael to buy the cards on the day of the theft. According to the OM, this Michael does not exist. The phone number that the name was connected to was created just before contact with the victim. And the number went off the air at the time of the robbery.

Ten of the stolen cards turned up in France in 2021. The French police confiscated them. Al A. sold those cards. He said that he bought the cards "by chance" in Almere. Pokemon cards have become increasingly popular over the past years because of their value. Rare copies are worth tens of thousands of euros. Al A. trades these cards. His lawyer asked for acquittal in the court in Zwolle. The man was not present at the robbery, and he warned the victim of this Michael, the lawyer said.

The other two suspects also claim to be innocent.