Overview

• On July 23, authorities took 24-year-old Richard Jovahn Nunes into custody in Taunton and charged him with six counts of receiving stolen property over $1,200 for his alleged role in the July 8 burglary.
• Officers executing a search warrant at Nunes’s Dartmouth apartment uncovered a shoebox containing high-value items, including a $30,000 Base Set Unlimited Green Wings Booster Box and multiple Charizard cards worth over $10,000 each.
• Detective Nicole Rodriguez said local collectible shops alerted police after spotting someone trying to sell stolen merchandise, triggering a coordinated multi-jurisdiction investigation.
• Sean Vieira, co-owner of 1st Edition Collectibles, disputes that Nunes was the masked burglar, noting his height would have prevented him from fitting under the store’s push bar.
• The spike in vintage Pokémon card prices has made specialty retailers prime targets for smash-and-grab thefts, prompting closer collaboration between shop owners and law enforcement.