A 20-year-old Maryland man identified as Joel Brown allegedly stole thousands of dollars worth of trading cards at a local shop in Virginia. Brown, while committing the alleged crime and while allegedly scouting the store, dressed as Spider-Man.
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According to a news release issued by the City of Fairfax Police Department on March 20, the incident took place on March 14. Police had received a report that, overnight, an individual dressed in a Spider-Man costume - more precisely, a masked Spider-Man hoodie - broke into Gaming Giant. The store is located at 4021 University Drive.
As per the police, the individual, later identified as Joel Brown, allegedly stole approximately $10,000 worth of merchandise. Fox 5 reports that among the products stolen were Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Pokémon cards. Graded rare cards can vary in value from a few hundred dollars up to thousands.
Gaming Giant reported the burglary on their
Facebook page. They shared photos of Brown wearing the Spider-Man hoodie earlier in the day and while committing the alleged crime."We are devastated to say that on Friday night, after closing, our store was broken into and robbed. Our front door was broken down and the culprit was wearing a masked Spiderman hoodie, taking numerous graded slabs as well as sealed Pokemon products," the store wrote. "Rest assured, we are taking measures to ensure customer safety. Although we opened late on Saturday, the store will still be open for its regular hours for the time being. Thank you for understanding."
Arrested And Charged
Days after the initial report, Fairfax Police managed to identify and arrest Joel Brown on March 19. He was transported to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center. Brown was charged with burglary and later released on an unsecured bond, according to the department's news release.
Many local customers were outraged and even disheartened following the incident. Mainly, they felt that since card collecting has a passionate community, the burglary completely contradicts the spirit of the hobby.
"I mean, honestly, it just makes me kind of depressed because we do feel like a community here," Kevin Coleman, a Gaming Giant customer, told Fox 5. Another customer, Rob Valentin, also spoke with the outlet. "Him actually coming in here and taking from the store and a community that we've developed and hold dear, it's just wrong," he said.
