A brazen robbery occurred at Gen Con 2023 in Indianapolis, the largest tabletop game convention in North America. Two men stole crates of Magic cards worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
How did the thieves do it? The theft occurred on August 2, 2023, a day before the event started and opened to the public.
According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMDP), the two suspects grabbed a pallet truck, loaded a pallet of crates full of trading cards, and shipped them to an undisclosed location.
Apparently, the thieves did not attract much attention between the traders who set up their stands. Footage from the surveillance cameras at the scene shows the two suspects strolling away, seemingly unhindered (via Twitter).
Stolen cards are from the Commander Masters Edition
Which cards were stolen? At first it was assumed that the cards were from the upcoming TCG “Disney Lorcana”. These aren’t available yet, but are being pre-ordered diligently and should debut at Gen Con.
However, Ravensburger confirmed via Twitter that their goods were complete and safe.
A few hours later, local store Patimes Comics & Games stated that the cards were from Magic: The Gathering. The boxes are said to have mainly contained Commander Master Sets and Collector Boosters.
The set of all 4 “Commander Masters” decks is currently available for pre-order from Games Island for €259.99, booster displays are available for €279.99 and €329.99, although prices may vary depending on the provider Amazon, for example, you pay a little more.
Overall, the stolen cards are said to have a value of 300,000 US dollars or the equivalent of almost 275,000 euros. The IMPD would like to speak to one Thomas J Dunbar and one Andrew Pearson Giaume in connection with the theft (via Twitter).
At least it’s certain that they couldn’t have been cards from the crossover set with The Lord of the Rings. Instead of brazen thieves, it was this simple lucky guy who found the rarest Magic card ever:
Magic fan spontaneously buys 2 collection boxes and is suddenly a millionaire: “Will change my life”