Florida man was caught on camera scouting a local card shop, then he returned days later with a chainsaw to execute a $12,000 heist

A Florida man has been accused of stealing $12,000 worth of goods from a collectibles store. According to True Crime News, the man reportedly used a rock to smash a window to get inside, then allegedly used his chainsaw to cut through the hurricane-proof display and take the expensive merchandise. Due to these seemingly intense actions, he even got injured and left blood on the scene.

Judging by this attempt, it’s not the first time for Florida’s crime scene to feature creativity gone awry, as seen in past incidents involving lawnmowers and chainsaws. The owner of the store Collection Realm contacted police on the 21st of May, reporting a possible burglary at his shop, per WRAL. The store owner also said he had seen the accused robber, identified as Clayton Warren, two days before the incident.

The hurricane-proof glass, which was supposed to protect the store owner’s expensive merchandise, didn’t stop Clayton, and the $12,000 worth of merchandise he allegedly took is said to be Pokémon cards. According to Kotaku, Clayton was later released on a $20,000 surety bond following this robbery attempt.

Investigators used his license plate to locate him

The surveillance footage showed Clayton’s vehicle, and the law enforcement used the license plate to locate him. They identified the address linked to the vehicle’s license plate and executed a search warrant on the residence, which appears to be Warren’s. When the authorities arrived, Warren was arrested and charged with grand theft as well as burglary.

This is not the only case where these rare Pokémon cards were stolen. According to the New York Post, two similar robberies occurred in Los Angeles. Both happened on the same day and resulted in a total loss of around $300,000. The first one took place at SportsCards in Simi Valley, where five individuals used an electric chainsaw to cut through and take around $50,000 worth of Pokémon and sports cards.

The second happened later that day in Sawtelle, where an armed thief confronted a card collector leaving the RWT Collective hobby shop and stole his valuable Pokémon collection. With such incidents coming to light, it looks like these collectibles-related burglaries are making headlines often. According to Kotaku, we are seeing an increase in these incidents due to scalping and supply shortages, as these multiply the merchandise’s value.