A thief has broken into a Washington state gaming and collectible store for the second time since August, the owner said, making off with tens of thousands of dollars worth of Pokémon cards.
Pacific Northwest Gaming and Collectibles owner Robert Cantrell shared security video of the Sunday break-in on Facebook, and told The News Tribune he believes it was the same thief that broke into his Lakewood store back in August 2024.
In the latest break-in, the thief stole approximately $10–11,000 worth of Pokémon cards, including a box of free Pokémon packs and toys the store gives out to children. Cantrell also wrote on Facebook that his cats got out after the break-in, but they later returned. In the first burglary, on Aug. 9 last year, the thief stole Pokémon cards, booster boxes and other items.
"So all together, the first time and this time, [he stole] a little over $70,000," Cantrell told the outlet. The Lakewood Police Department is investigating the burglaries.
Cantrell opened the store in February 2021, in tribute to his sister, Kassandra Cantrell, who was murdered in August 2020.
"Great how this POS keeps dishonoring Kasey's memory and stealing from the community," Cantrell wrote alongside surveillance video on Facebook.
Although the store was closed Monday to make repairs to broken glass, Cantrell said he intends to reopen as soon as possible.
"It affects me in a way that I won't be able to help more people," Cantrell told The News Tribune. "The purpose of my story is, if you need to sell your collection, you can trust us to come in here, because we guarantee to pay you more for your stuff than any other store in the state, and if we don't, we'll give you $1,000 cash."
In the meantime, he said donations for the kids' box would be appreciated.
"If anybody wants to donate anything for the kids box, we definitely appreciate so we can get that going again," he said. "There's nothing that we can give away to kids at the moment."
--with reporting by TMX
