Florida couple accused in trading card shoplifting scheme, deputies say
Florida couple accused of stealing 98 packs of trading cards
A Florida couple has been arrested, accused of stealing 98 packs of sports trading cards from a Target store in Palm Coast. Officials said the man entered the store, put the trading cards inside, and walked out of the side fire exit, where a woman was waiting in a vehicle.
FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. - A Florida couple accused of pulling off a multi-county retail theft ring targeting high-value trading cards has been arrested, according to Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
Authorities identified the suspects as Andrew Simmons, 27, and Madeline Whaley, 35, both of Jacksonville.
Investigators say the pair had previously hit at least one other Target location in Northeast Florida using the exact same scheme.
The backstory:
Newly released bodycam footage shows Flagler County deputies taking Simmons and Whaley into custody at gunpoint in the Palm Coast Target parking lot.
Investigators say Simmons walked into the home goods section, grabbed a plastic storage tub, and filled it with 98 packs of sports trading cards from the back of the store. He snapped the lid shut to conceal the items and attempted to slip out of a side fire exit where Whaley was allegedly waiting in a black BMW getaway car.
Because the duo had pulled the scheme at other locations, Target Security instantly recognized Simmons when he entered the store, flagged his vehicle, and alerted law enforcement.
Deputies down the street on an unrelated call responded immediately.
"He tried it one too many times. He thought he was very clever and thought he had the perfect plan," Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said. "But I got a jail full of people that think they had a perfect plan, and they're sitting in the Green Roof Inn."
Deputies recovered $2,500 worth of stolen cards along with fentanyl and drug paraphernalia inside the vehicle.
Flagler County deputies recover a plastic storage container filled with boxes of sports trading cards that were stolen from a store in Palm Coast. (Credit: Flagler County Sheriff's Office)
Thieves targeting card shops
Alan Narz, owner of Big League Sports and Pokemon Cards in Casselberry, said the trading card market has exploded over the past few years into a multi-billion dollar asset class.
"Probably every week there's a card that sells for hundreds of thousands of dollars, and every month a card that sells for over a million dollars," Narz said. "Card stores are being broken into all the time, and that comes with the territory when you have something so hot and desirable."
Narz added that while 99% of individual cards in retail packs are worth about a dollar, the potential of pulling a rare, high-value card keeps both collectors and thieves targeting sealed boxes.
The surge in high-value thefts is forcing shop owners and retailers to ramp up security.
"If there's any stores watching this, get that film on your window so you can't just throw a brick through a window," Narz urged. "The film holds it all together... You can have a gate pulled down so they can't drive their car through it."
What's next:
Both Simmons and Whaley face charges of grand theft, fentanyl possession, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Simmons was also booked on three active out-of-county grand theft warrants out of Clay County.
Both remain held at the Flagler County inmate facility.
The Source: This story was written with information gathered by FOX 35 reporter Chancelor Winn.