This man was ARRESTED because of a Pokémon card

Pokémon cards can be worth a lot of money, but only if they're real... In 2022, a Japanese man was arrested for selling COUNTERFEIT Pokémon cards, Nintendo games and more.
A huge thanks to the Obscure Japan channel for allowing me to use footage from when they visited this store! Check out their full video here:
- • Japan Game Shopping VO...
PATREON - / thomasgamedocs
MERCH - teespring.com/stores/thomas-g...
TWITTER - / thomasgdocs
SOURCES
English articles
- www.nintendolife.com/news/202...
- kotaku.com/pokemon-cards-fake...
Japanese news articles
- web.archive.org/web/202202241...
- web.archive.org/web/202202221...
- jin115.com/archives/52340225.html
Japanese blog post with details about double pricing + fakes
- famicoms.net/blog-entry-3904....
Japanese tweet reactions
- matomame.jp/user/yonepo665/c6...
kk-information.com/trend/?p=7...
Store's own tweet
- / 1496391127469289472
Japanese law firm article
atomfirm.com/keiji/4117

[@ThomasGameDocs]

Hey, thanks for checking out my video!! Like I said in the video, a huge thanks to the channel Obscure Japan for letting me use some clips from the time they visited this store! Check out their full video here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/e4OomaCulLCSas0 ALSO please don't try and find or contact this store. The "fake game" incident from this video has been dealt with by the authorities, so we're just here to learn about it, not to go all vigilante! Cool cool! I'll see you next week - byeee!

[@Cliffordlonghead]

First

[@Cliffordlonghead]

J K

[@Cliffordlonghead]

Awesome video

[@talisegaming4192]

Great video!

[@TramiNguyen-oi3kp]

Awesome video!

[@YOEL_44]

2:20 Is not just social pressure, in many countries it is ilegal for a store to charge you more than is advertised, in Spain at least, they're legaly obligated to honor the lower advertised price, and that is specifically to prevent these situations.

[@bird_obsession]

That's the case over here in the USA too, if I'm not mistaken.

[@Nerfyboy800]

​@@bird_obsessionConsidering American prices don't include tax, I would disagree

[@bird_obsession]

@@Nerfyboy800 That’s a completely different ballpark.

[@fireaza]

@@Nerfyboy800 Japan does this too, it annoys the shit out of me. Unless you're going to allow me to pay the tax not included figure, include the tax on the price tag, since that's what I'll be charged in the end.

[@YOEL_44]

@@Nerfyboy800 Careful with that, in Spain that could also be the case. If you work with providers (I did it in a home appliance store) they might also give you pre-taxation pricing, but in those cases they clearly state it and they even usually show the extra percentage that your client would have to pay (21%), before your own proffits.

[@tails230]

Sleazy store, double pricing, counterfeits. This is the exact description of a Crazy Redd.

[@morayfrye]

Crazy redd irl no way

[@TheRealRidley12]

What's that?

[@morayfrye]

@@TheRealRidley12 Crazy redd is an animal crossing character and he has a shop where he sells paintings and artifacts. The main comment explains crazy redd

[@Lucy-dg9en]

Hey Cousin! Redd had to work *reallll* hard to get his hands on that Vmax Gigantamax Charizard! Took months it did! But since we're family, he'll give it to you for just 5000 Bells! Yes / No

[@iamlorddems3859]

​@@Lucy-dg9ensorry sir this is a fake

[@SendFoodz]

6:02 i like to believe the 150 fakes found in the store were one card for each Pokemon

[@spongebobmusicuhg3420]

"um acthually there are 151 pokemon in gen 1" 🤓🤓🤓🤓

[@lyndonluquin4091]

​@@spongebobmusicuhg3420 Sadly, Mew is so elusive that not even its counterfeit counterpart wanted to be caught IRL.

[@spongebobmusicuhg3420]

@@lyndonluquin4091 imagine if the pokemon themselves were also fake as well. say hello to firemander....

[@orphancharmander1168]

@spongebobmusicung3420 What you mean, are you saying Blackrock & Black Lives Matter are scams, well it everything is fake, good luck living in a house, you cant protect from TANKS 👀🇩🇰❤️

[@sirflimflam]

2:30 there wouldn't even just be a shouting match, that's straight up illegal in the US. Consumer protection laws forbid this sort of thing from the get go. My company regularly audits certain stores to ensure the price being charged is the price on the sticker, and any discrepancies can be bad.

[@99percent_]

I’m so used of bootleg and fake products everywhere that I’m impressed they could arrest that man… for a day.

[@Nexusspeeth]

I love it when Thomas goes detective mode

[@alvarochaves1999]

名探偵トーマス

[@ildamireles4073]

それについては議論の余地はありません！

[@laurindaevans5178]

???

[@peepsg]

Oh great it Thomas and Friends ☁️ 🚂

[@marblemunkey]

Thomas Game Detective

[@wishbonefan]

I've experienced double pricing here in the US, this one store I live within walking distance of does this all the time, I see some Mario plush that's like $8 on the tag but when I bring it to the checkout they say it's like $17 or something. Bullshit. Usually I just say something like "That's not what the price said, so I guess I won't buy it"

[@RydiaLS83]

depend where you go in the USA. double pricing in state, where i live, is illegal. so if a store get caught doing that. they would be in trouble by the state. Sadly, it still happens here like in small ma and pa stores. its still illegal, in our state. they don't enforce it too much.

[@Tulaash]

I have not had this happen to me, but I have heard that some thrift stores in the USA love to pull this tactic.

[@wishbonefan]

@@Tulaash I've never really had this happen to me with thrift stores tbh, just this one specific store that sells board games and toys.

[@MechaDragonX]

With the guy confessing immediately, that's just how it works in Japan. Japan is infamous for its insanely high conviction right and high rate of false convictions. If you get caught there is no way you are not getting a guilty verdict. This is precisely why Japanese crime fiction, and even stuff that have to do with it like Persona 5, but such an emphasis on it. And why Phoenix Wright, at least in the Japanese manual for the first game on DS and the trilogy on 3DS, says that he believes his duty is to prevent these false convictions.

[@haruhisuzumiya6650]

They definitely had a printing press

[@CaptainCat101]

This is why I stick to Polywag Pokemon cards

[@weshuiz1325]

Meanwhile "double pricing" would get the shop owner in jail

[@MeeBacon]

I think, at least in Massachusetts, stores are legally required to charge the lower price if there is a discrepancy on the price tag and the price in the system. Proof: I read a sign some time ago at a store that said this, please search it up to be 100% sure.

[@EeveeFromAlmia]

I don’t know about other counties, but I know that in Australia charging more than the price displayed is actually illegal. That thing in the US where the tax is added at the end and not included? An actual crime.

[@spugintrntl]

Fun fact, in the US (at least where I am) if the clerk tells you the price on the tag is out of date/too low, they'll apologize for the mix-up and either refuse to sell you the item or just charge the lower price.

[@Peelster1]

Depends on the store and what city you're in. I encountered something similar to double pricing in Bull Moose before. They had their listed price for the game, on the wall. On the game case itself, it was shown that the game was pre-owned at least twice because it also had 2 pre-owned price stickers from other businesses. The Bull Moose pricetag was higher than the pre-owned tags from other businesses. I pointed that out at the counter and the employee tried to say that the game's price is actually higher now than what was listed, but that they would give me the lower price. GameStop was selling the game for an even lower price than any of those prices. I never bought from that Bull Moose location again. It was the big city store. My local Bull Moose actually has good customer service. I also bet that if they refuse to sell you item, that they are "correcting" the price on it after so they can actually get money for it, as opposed to attempting to sell it to you for the higher price, they just refuse to sell it you and put it back on the shelf stickered at the higher price the next day.

[@ThereAreThoseWhoCallMeTim]

I have a suspicion that this retro gaming store may or may not have ties to the Yakuza or some other form of organized crime. It would explain how the shop is able to stay open to this day despite being exposed for knowingly engaging in illegal activity.

[@therealjaystone2344]

Yakuza have a history of overcharging stuff including electronics (stolen) to sell back. The Super Famicom was the hottest trend back then and Nintendo successfully prevented them from stealing inventories

[@Tcgdealzzz]

This explains a lot on why a lot of Japanese trading card shops don’t allow recording because if they get caught selling fakes by the police their done for

[@Digdugduggie101]

“Double pricing” is illegal where I live. You’re entitled to the price listed on the store’s sticker.

[@gamesake999]

is it illegal if you see a card for $3 ask them to price it and they say its more cause of market value?

[@FG-bn3qq]

My school actually made Pokémon cards illegal back in 1999. To the point a few kids got arrested because the police claimed they were a new form of gambling 😂 I guess they forgot trading baseball cards was a thing?

[@kandigloss6438]

In the US I've never encountered "double pricing" in stores but I've had people try to pull that tactic on me at more shady yard sales (similar to what people on your side of the pond would call a boot sale) where you feel more pressured to go through with buying something because you are dealing with a "normal person" selling stuff. It didn't work on me though, I just put the thing I was going to buy down and walked away.

[@glenngriffon8032]

Pretty much the best thing you can do. I mean it ain't like they're going to remember you, especially if you show up wearing a face mask on and say Covid is still out there.

[@Mephitinae]

You might get a better price if you say "oh, never mind then. i need to check if i can get it cheaper online"

[@Peelster1]

I encountered something similar to double pricing in Bull Moose before. They had their listed price for the game, on the wall. On the game case itself, it was shown that the game was pre-owned at least twice because it also had 2 pre-owned price stickers from other businesses. The Bull Moose pricetag was higher than the pre-owned tags from other businesses. I pointed that out at the counter and the employee tried to say that the game's price is actually higher now than what was listed, but that they would give me the lower price. GameStop was selling the game for an even lower price than any of those prices. I never bought from that Bull Moose location again. It was the big city store. My local Bull Moose actually has good customer service.

[@jellojiggler1693]

Why is it called a "boot sale?"

[@wplays4271]

Quite an interesting topic. That tactic of displaying fake prices really surprised me. Here in the Netherlands, it’s custom to pay the price you see. For example, back in 2018 I was looking for a micro SD card for my Switch. I found one for 256 GB for a really good price, not suspiciously low like 3 bucks or anything (where it’s obviously a mistake). But it looked more like a good sale (I don’t remember the exact price, it was 5 years ago). It was the right price tag for the product, because the name and barcode on the price card were the same as the product. But when I took it to the cashier, they told me it was more expensive. I explained what the price tag said, and after the store employee saw it themselves. They sold it to me for that price. With them correcting the price tag afterwards. I expected this to be the norm everywhere. It’s quite interesting to see it’s not

[@richyroa]

I have worked in retail as a clerk in Chile. You HAVE to respect the price tag. Some weekends I was asked to update said tags and make sure every salesperson is respecting them. If the store is caught not respecting the prices, it will have to pay fines; as it is by law considered shady, unethical and illegal.

[@jmac160]

"Double pricing" in the US has a different name: bait and switch.

[@SakuraAvalon]

The double pricing thing this store is doing, is illegal in Canada. That store would face more then customers yelling if they tried it here.

[@DirectorX59]

For the last year, I've been watching all of your videos. You have become like the David Attenborough of video games! Some tv channel should make a series with you, like those scrap handlers but with Tomas traveling the world to uncover video game history.

[@TheMAZZTer]

You mention the idea of "double pricing" in the west. I wouldn't be surprised if it was outright illegal especially in the EU. There are strict rules regarding things like when you can mark items as on sale after changing the base list price (for example, you can't raise it to make a sale look better than it is). So I would imagine this is covered too. Probably illegal in the US as well since this is a more fundamental pricing issue than fake sales. But I am not a lawyer and don't know for sure.

[@SakuraAvalon]

It's illegal in Canada. But it seems to be dependent on which state you're talking about when it comes to America.

[@WreckItRolfe]

Unless it's been added since the UK left it's definitely not unlawful by EU law. Legally, the prices on shelves etc mean nothing in England.

[@ThereAreThoseWhoCallMeTim]

I think the point that Thomas is trying to make is that even if double pricing was technically legal in Western countries, stores wouldn’t be able to get away with it. This is because, unlike citizens of many Asian counties, people in the West generally have much less problem with causing a commotion in public if they are being wronged or scammed or taken advantage of. If a store in the U.S. or Italy or New Zealand were to try to charge their products for more than what is advertised, it wouldnt be long before customers started shouting furiously at the clerks - demanding to speak with the manager and threatening to sue the shop for false advertising or retail fraud or something.

[@luigifan4585]

@ThereAreThoseWhoCallMeTim It's honestly not even about causing a scene, it's just that customers in these countries would just be way more willing to simply turn down buying the product at the scammy price instead of feeling socially obligation to buy it anyways

[@knyght27]

He just admitted to the police that he was selling bootlegs? What a chad

[@notenoughmonkeys]

I once tried to purchase a copy of Double Dragon for the Famicom in there and got caught out by double pricing. I had to pay for 4 dragons!

[@silveramyknux241]

5:29 Actually there was an official Mega man 3 pc game. But it’s nothing like the original, and I don’t think it was sold in Japan.

[@Hijiri_MIRACHION]

Wasn't that released on DOS? That wouldn't have even come on a CD anyway, so it would've still been obvious.

[@alyssataylorsversion13]

you are so underrated!! i wait for your videos every week!

[@DomBobomb]

Well, his admission of guilt is the best way to deal with the issue, given they had enough evidence to arrest him to begin with, legal cases are very different in Japan vs the US/Uk with a prosecution rate of about 99%. If you’re arrested, there’s little to no chance of denying the charges, so you should do your best to admit it, and take a more lenient punishment than lying etc.

[@nintendians]

never trust those kind of store - they then to rip you off.

[@mimivrc4148]

the "double pricing" is just flat out illegal in USA, shout matches aside. it's why in places like Walmart will always give you the item at the wrong price if an employee places them in the wrong spot on the shelf

[@WreckItRolfe]

Americans don't have label descriptions?

[@mimivrc4148]

they do and it doesn't matter. that would be a common scam if the label description could let them get around it, it would allow shops to do exactly what they do in this video if that mattered @@WreckItRolfe

[@caleb9659]

A local game store near me kind of does double pricing, but not intentionally. They’re also quite large, and it takes them a while to inventory everything, so some price stickers are out of date. They use different colors to let you know if a price is current or not

[@edwardshen6186]

Thomas with the weekly uploads

[@NTBXP1]

Ha! Double pricing would make "smash bros" happen in real life! People would smash the face of the seller here in Brasil.

[@Nevir202]

Que coisa kkkk

[@pedrobeckup456]

Imagine if they came to Brazil and saw one "Camelô"

[@catholiccontriversy]

I know a store in the us that sort of does double pricing, only it follows price charting where it isn't outrageously higher (like having the price tag at $8 but then he says "actually it's $10"), and then he says "go find something else if you don't want that price," and since I'll see a stack of stickers on the game I'm inclined to believe he's being honest about his pricing.

[@_mochette_]

That was a fun watch! I love how you reached out to other youtubers. I thought those parts were interesting. "Thomasさん" lololol

[@dysphoria-chan]

How is that practice legal there? It's similar to false adverstising, they're liying to the costumers.

[@gigitrix]

Probably isn't but like with everything it's about enforcement

[@ashleyslomo4973]

Detective Thomas AND “Hotel Dusk” score! A+++

[@dylanwicklund5129]

Well that's because where I live in Canada double pricing is illegal and if that price tag has one price on it and they try to say it's more at the cash register you get it for free or for the price on the tag usually it's like bigger stores that will give you something for free and every other store will sell you it for the price on the tag

[@DeerBonesBaby]

Me seeing the thumbnail: Yeah ok, probabaly something banned for cheese Me reading the title: Oh okay! Nevermind

[@lyndonluquin4091]

Then you got this; Before watching the video: Oh great, another one of THOSE customers. After watching the video: What the-? The shop is STILL in business, AND sells fakes?!

[@jormungand72]

In America, if an item has a listed price on that product, it hast o be sold for that price. This has sometimes led to items being mislabeled and the buyer getting a great deal; because its the law. You cant bait and switch, as we call it here

[@Trekkster]

I always end up being interested in something I did not know was a topic of interest before :D

[@PodoHelmer]

The store Alive is now...UNALIVE 😂☠️ Well at least i thought it would be but the story took a turn i didnt think would happen 🤔

[@mdmackint]

at this point we're watching Thomas Crime Docs

[@Feurigel1806]

I love how you used pictures from Detective Conan for your video XD

[@GerardMenvussa]

I'm glad I never got into card collecting, sounds like hell. Then again, there is a risk with fake video games too. Some people really only exist just to make other's life shittier >:(

[@Simon_Q]

It's ok if you want them because you like the art or you play with close friends, but if you want to resell or play competive, yeah, it's hell.

[@TheOfficialDorianelevator]

double pricing actually happened to me once when i was buying a PADLOCK. it costed 20€ (yes i am in a european country so euros) but when i took it to pay it they said that the price tag was out of date and that it costed 60€. tho this time it was DEFINITELY an accident. they used to have a abus stand but changed to BRICARD. and some price tags clearly said abus on front, so i get that they forgot to change them.

[@zombieprophet648]

double pricing happens at all US comic shops

[@reverseshin]

The owner should be behind bars and the store should be shut down.

[@danielevans7439]

Used card and game shops are everywhere in Japan. Bootleg retro game consoles are also very common, but to my knowledge they usually don’t use licensed Nintendo games, just really lousy games.

[@Hijiri_MIRACHION]

I know about things like the PocketFami and the Famicom Yarou, but what other obscurities exist in the Japanese bootleg console scene?

[@ms.kuroitsu1633]

6:43 I figured that was the reason. He would've gotten the consoles from Temu and other places that sold the Knockoff consoles for like $5+ each, just to turn around and sell it at the price of a regular console. (I've heard of the "Pocket Game Controller,," and had wondered if it played Game Boy games too. But it was only designed to look like that to get you to buy the thing)

[@ExistingBone]

In my country whenever I ran into an old price on the indicator I just was allowed to buy it for that price and they changed the label most of the time

[@estellegrignon]

Where I live, if there is a price difference between the tag and the one shown at the register, not only do you get to pay the lowest of the two, but the store needs to either give you a 10$ discount or, if the item is under ten bucks, to give it to you for free. It also applies if the price is different from the one advertised in a commercial for example. The only exceptions are for goods whose price is regulated by law, like alcohol, cigarettes or milk. Clothing is also exempted for some vague reason from the 10$ discount, though you still get it at the cheapest price of the two.

[@night-x6793]

It's based on state you're talking in the US about the double pricing because in MN what you have tagged for that price has to be that price.

[@johnconner7813]

Had a pawn shop double pricing issue the dude compared videogames to gold "price changes every day "

[@Garfield_Minecraft]

0:54 OMG your japanese is so good

[@kennethmiller6626]

Makes me remember the shady flea market in my hometown when I was a kid that would sell packs of super cheap Yu-Gi-Oh cards... but they were counterfeits from Mexico. Nothing like pulling a fake Egyptian God card out of every other pack, lol. Ah, the good old days ...

[@ScrubMyTub]

double charging doesn't happen in Canada. that's highly illegal, and they have to honor the price tag amount

[@Lovuschka]

Thomas: "Please don't contact this store." Nick Robinson, probably: "I'll just fly there to see whom I can't contact."

[@valery_draws]

Wait, at the end of the video, is that miyamoto’s silhouette that’s going behind bars??😂

[@thawhiteazn]

If store tried this “double pricing” nonsense in the US they would be breaking the law. Pretty sure this qualifies as false advertising.

[@kylewarren5268]

Only 150 items were fake in a store that size? Piglets definitely missed waaaaaaay more items

[@Connowot387]

“Alive” shouldn’t be living up to its name, imo.

[@ImmacHn]

People should go to that store and make a scene for the smallest of price changes, see how they deal with everyone causing a ruckus for the minor of inconveniences 😂

[@wildpineapple7784]

great video!!!

[@bouncybubble]

This is one of my favourite thomas videos because idk

[@tazos4686]

About double pricing. I dont know how it is in other countries but in poland if the price tag and a price at the checkout are different (usually price tag is lower) then the price tag is actual price and seller cant charge you more (its in the law)

[@turboswim]

Glad to see that stolen PCE Rockman Dump finally got someone arrested.

[@budgetcoinhunter]

The police may have been useless... but fire it off to the Nintendo Ninjas and see what happens.

[@rookypoe]

Double pricing is it legal in QC Canada: A:If the price don't match its the price on the shelf. B:If it's lower than10$ it's free

[@pokemontrainer9285]

Yea if someone sold me a fake Pokémon card I would be raging mad and I don’t like that.

[@JAI_SHREE_RAM12337]

Its funny imagening Detective Takagi taking down someone

[@Peelster1]

So it's a little bit different from the title due to the fact that the cards are counterfeit. By definition, they are not Pokémon cards. I ran into some counterfeit Yu-Gi-Oh cards at my local fair once. They can get away with it because they're packed up and out of town after the weekend. It was too good to be true the the evil version of the Egyptian god cards were being sold for $10 each when they were normally much higher. (This was around the time when they were 1st printed.) The original promo god cards were $50 each and a full set of Exodia was $150. A few years ago you could get all of those cards and 3 Yugi decks in a box for under $30. I have also purchased a fake Pokémon Yellow from GameStop once. I asked why it was only $2 and they said it was because it was fake. The game plays like a real one in the Game Boy, so I purchased it while knowing that the game was counterfeit. I wonder on the legality of the sale though. If advertised as counterfeit, is it legal to sell it?

[@splitter7376]

Would be illegal in the UK to engage in double pricing.

[@yoshieggshaha]

I wonder how they stay in business lol

[@SargeWolf010]

🤔 I'm not up to date on the cards so that Acerola to me is inconclusive

[@jfwfreo]

If its doing dodgy crap and has such a crappy reputation, why are people still going there and buying stuff?

[@KittenKatja]

They wanted to implement digital prices in Germany. So Kinder Surprise Eggs would be €0.50 in the morning, but €0.90 in the evening till closing time.

[@splitter7376]

Hope that isn't the future sounds ridiculous.

[@DarkFrozenDepths]

Sadly, that ending is the same crap you see a lot of American companies go through.... Especially some of the more wealthy ones

[@sanjivinsmoke2149]

I live in mexico and here they dont really care of its counterfeit or not. When it is they just tell us straight up and put a lower price. Heck thats how i got most of my n64 games.

[@catzoo1]

Double pricing Is illegal in the UK.

[@WreckItRolfe]

No it's not. Labels are just an Invitation to Treat.

[@iamlorddems3859]

Trench coat man having a store instead of a trench coat

[@diamondchannel1816]

I still want to go there

[@hayleywaalen2612]

Looks like Acerola is innocent for this

[@thehackerpro-mr4vz]

150 fake stuff is a lot of fake stuff to sell

[@JoesCuppaT]

Damn thats crazy

[@MarioSonicTokusatsuFan3000]

While I didn't have any photos, I did actually visited the store back in 2017.

[@EdmondDantes224]

Detective Conan anime footage makes all videos better. The Megaman counterfeiting is worse than basic bootlegging because those were fan-made ports, not made for profit but just to see if something is possible. Its kinda whack they wind up showing up in stores and such.

[@neylasworldshortsvideos430]

NEVER WANNA GIVE YOU UP NEVER GONNA LET YOU DOWN NEVER GONNA TURN AROUND AND DESERT YOU

[@willissudweeks1050]

If you think you can get a card worth thousands for only 15 bucks you deserve your disappointment.

[@statrunner]

Is that Hotel Dusk music??

[@TramiNguyen-oi3kp]

Can you upload video of Kirby voice actor evolution please?

[@3RR0R_THE_MODDER]

"at last alive is dead"

[@plantyh]

This video is really cool

[@goldenistheguy]

At least it’s not an Arcanine card!

[@shresthasengupta8984]

4:58 imagine owning this card (the real one), you could by a god damn Tesla!

[@Sparkette]

9:44 I guess I'll make sure to look for a non-binary clerk.

[@haruhisuzumiya6650]

Counterfeiting is a bad idea

[@andychamplin]

If a store did something like "double pricing" here in the United States the store would get shut down and a full on investigation would happen. The store would not open until a court allowed them to continue business.

[@moisesgalas5968]

That’s funny they didn’t start the investigation in they fuck with mega. Man

[@DaniloGanzella]

they tried to double price me here in brazil once in a clothes store called "Levis", i also does not like to cause a scene but also did not want to get scammed, so i Just told them to fuck off and left