Collectibles have become a big business. Movie props, toy cars and even trading cards have skyrocketed in value in recent years. Some even seem to gain value when they’ve been stolen and recovered. In 2024, the ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz sold for $32 million after being recovered by the FBI following a museum heist. Earlier this year, Nicolas Cage’s copy of Action Comics #1, featuring the first appearance of Superman, sold for $15 million. It was found in a storage unit years after being taken during a party at the actor’s home.
Thieves made off with more than $50,000 in Hot Wheels toys in Colton late Wednesday night only to be caught a few hours later. The San Bernardino Sun reports that 350 boxes of collectible cars were recovered from the back of a Chevy Silverado, driven by a 20-year-old, who was arrested on suspicion of burglary, possession of stolen property and grand theft. The toys were taken from a BNSF freight car- the latest in a string of train robberies in the Inland Empire.
About a week earlier, nearly a million dollars in rare collectible sports and trading cards were stolen from a FedEx truck stopped for just over an hour near a card grading facility in Santa Fe Springs. The lot of several hundred items, including extremely valuable and rare Pokémon cards, filled two pallets and had gone through condition grading at Professional Sports Authenticator before the October 13 heist. One dealer compared the valuable collectibles to stocks and bonds as an asset class.
“Our customer service team has contacted affected customers directly and is arranging compensation based on fair market value,” the company told ABC News. “We understand the impact this has on collectors involved, many of whom see these cards as far more than a financial asset.”
A card and collectibles shop in Anaheim was hit by thieves who tunneled through the walls in September and made off with tens of thousands of dollars in merchandise, including more rare Pokémon cards. In February, a LEGO store in Redlands was ransacked by a hooded thief with a headlamp who made off with more than $1000 in rare sets.
This spring, a former MGA Entertainment employee was charged with stealing over $1 million in collectible die-cast cars from the company’s factory in the San Fernando Valley. “My prosecutors do not come to play: If you steal collectible toy cars or any cargo from our businesses or ports, you will be fully prosecuted,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said in a statement. “Diecast cars like CarTuned are not everyday toys or merchandise with a set retail value, they are prized collectibles with a premium value to a collector… My office will continue to fight for our local businesses and hold criminals, whether they are inside employees or outside thieves, accountable.”
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