The renowned Pokémon franchise is one of the most important that exist in the world, surpassing its origin as a video game and becoming a power also in genres such as anime or in places like Japan a brand that responds to all kinds of merchandise that is then exported around the world such as their cards. And the fact is that these products have become collector’s items of the highest value that apparently caught the attention of a criminal group in the Asian country, since it used some of the most valuable cards of all to launder the money they had obtained fraudulently.
Criminal group in Japan used Pokémon cards to launder money
An interview conducted a few days ago to a leader of a criminal gang in Japan is giving much to talk about in the networks, and is that this man stated how the popular Pokémon franchise had a strong relationship with his work, more precisely when it came to money laundering. Using the most expensive cards of all, they could “clean” the funds obtained in a way that no one noticed, especially the security forces, since this group even had a very meticulous way of working that involved weighing the packs of cards.
According to the criminal, they bought cards with their “dirty” money, artificially increasing their prices considerably among collectors and then, by attracting their attention with their prices and above all having the cards, they could sell them, making it difficult for them to be discovered. In order to get these more expensive cards, they used scales and even very sensitive metal detectors to be able to discover which packs or envelopes had the rare cards, since in general these cards have a metallic film that slightly changes their weight from the normal ones.
Even the other cards, those of lesser value, were also sold in the market, because, although the most expensive ones could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, some also cost over $100 dollars, so they could be sold quickly and obtain a small profit, which in the quantities that were handled was a lot. In addition, with the most expensive cards, they could make their transactions abroad, since they sent them to other countries where they sold them for their local currency, changing currency and avoiding any kind of traceability.
This shows us that Pokémon has become more than a franchise or a brand, but a world of possibilities for all kinds of people, beyond the fans who seek to enjoy the content, but also for those who want to make fraudulent movements. Pokémon cards have become, for quite some time now, one of the most important and expensive hobbies in the world, with some of them worth millions of dollars, such as the one known as “Pikachu Illustrator” which costs more than 5 million dollars.
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