VANCOUVER — Vancouver police say a man has been arrested after a series of robberies where the alleged thief bear sprayed unsuspecting sellers of high-value Pokémon cards.

Police say there have been five robberies since March 23 involving transactions set up on Facebook marketplace to sell Pokémon cards, some of which are worth “thousands of dollars.”

The department says the suspect arranged to meet people in public to buy the cards, then used bear spray on the victims before stealing their cards and running away.

Police say they made the arrest after communicating with the suspect online and arranging to meet to sell Pokémon cards.

Vancouver police say the investigation is ongoing and people who make arrangements to buy or sell things with strangers can use the department’s safe exchange location outside police headquarters on Cambie St.

A robbery last month at a collectibles store in Abbotsford, B.C., netted thieves about $30,000 worth of Pokémon cards, and other similar thefts have occurred in the last year in New Westminster, Calgary and Fort McMurray.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2026