7.6 Tons Of Fake Pokémon Cards Seized By Chinese Authorities

7.6 Tons Of Fake Pokémon Cards Seized By Chinese Authorities

Customs officials at Shanghai’s Pudong Airport have seized 7.6 tons of fake Pokémon cards. The cards were shipped from a company in China’s Qingdao province and headed for the Netherlands.

According to Pokeguardian, the customs declaration, which listed the export products as having no brand name, raised suspicion among the airport officials. Pokémon is copyrighted in China and is protected by the country’s intellectual property laws. Therefore, exporting fake cards violates Chinese law.

Customs officials opened the boxes and discovered that they contained phony Pokémon cards. The exporter was apparently listed as a company called Qingdao Import and Export Co., Ltd.

Shanghai Daily reports that the cards were packed in large boxes and loaded onto pallets. In total, customs officials intercepted around 400,000 fake packs. This was a massive haul for the customs officials.

Would you be fooled? (Screenshot: Shanghai Daily)
Would you be fooled? (Screenshot: Shanghai Daily)

Here is a look at some fake boxes, packs, and individual cards.

Or would you know these were fake? (Screenshot: Shanghai Daily)
Or would you know these were fake? (Screenshot: Shanghai Daily)

Some of the bootleg cards shown in official Chinese media were Spanish language Pokémon Sword and Shield Vivid Voltage booster packs. It’s believed that the packs would have been sold as genuine in Europe. Other boxes simply read “PK” and featured famed Pokémon characters like Pikachu.

Would you be able to tell that these aren’t legit? Maybe you can, but these bootleg cards could easily be purchased by unsuspecting customers. It’s always advisable to buy cards from reputable dealers, but here are some tips on spotting fake Pokémon cards, which continue to be a problem for collectors and players.

It's always a good idea to closely check the print quality and card stock. (Screenshot: Shanghai Daily)
It’s always a good idea to closely check the print quality and card stock. (Screenshot: Shanghai Daily)

Good work on preventing these cards from entering the market. According to Yicai Global, this is one of the biggest counterfeit IP confiscations in China in recent memory. The inevitable question is, wait for it, did they catch ‘em all?

Check out more footage of the contraband cards from Games Sina’s Weibo, The Paper, and Shanghai Daily.

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