Three teenagers were arrested in Vancouver Tuesday night after a man was bear‑sprayed during a robbery involving high‑value Pokémon cards sold through Facebook Marketplace. The Vancouver Police Department says the suspects fled the scene of the robbery near East King Edward Avenue and Ontario Street in a vehicle that was later intercepted by VPD officers in Burnaby. Two 15‑year‑olds and one 16‑year‑old were arrested and released the following day with conditions, according to a VPD release issued Thursday. Police are recommending criminal charges against them. Only one of the stolen Pokémon cards—valued at $7,000 each—was recovered at the scene and returned to the victim. The whereabouts of the other card is under investigation, according to VPD spokesperson Const. Darren Wong. Wong says there have been seven robberies in the past month involving the sale of Pokémon cards on Facebook Marketplace, five of which involved the same suspect. “The suspect would arrange to meet sellers in a public place and, instead of buying the cards, would allegedly use bear spray on the victims, steal the cards and run off,” VPD Staff Sgt. Ryan Campbell said in an earlier statement. Posing as a Pokémon card seller, police arranged a meet‑up with the suspect on March 27 and arrested him when he showed up. Wong says a copycat robbery occurred the day after VPD issued a release about that arrest. “Anytime we do a news release, we understand there are other people who are watching for the wrong reasons,” Wong told CTV News Thursday. He says people buying, selling or trading items online can protect themselves by choosing a public meeting place, preferably during the day. “No one has been robbed at a police station—use us,” Wong said, referring to the Safe Exchange location at VPD headquarters at 2120 Cambie St.
