Theft at SCG Sommerset NJ

[chinEsE girl]

This is just a heads up to players out there who are going to the Bazaar of Moxen next week or any other large events for the next few months.

Eli Kassis had his car broken into and several binders and boxes stolen during the deck reg and construction at the Sunday team sealed event at the SCG open. The binders that were stolen were filled with a large number of miscut dual lands (about 30), 30 beta duals and several pieces of power, and just about every legacy staple in Japanese foil. There were also two boxes stolen with a large assortment of foil Japanese cards and about 100 revised duals, mostly blue ones. There is also a large number of miscut cards of all sorts, so there are a lot of unique things that were taken. If anyone sees these cards, please let us know. Hopefully we can stop the theives from immediately dumping these cards and giving us some time I catch them.

[Trentemoller]

:( This is so sad. I really really hope you guys can find the cards back.

[Julian23]

The same thing happened to my friends at GP Verona. Their car was broken into while they were eating at McDonalds. About 25.000€ in cards were stolen. Watch out for this shit and never leave anything of worth behind in your car.

Such a shame.

[Einherjer]

It is very sad indeed and I hope for the very best but could you tell me one reason to bring such a big load of money/cards to a tournament?

Greetings

[goblinsplayer]

Wow, sorry to hear. Those cards must have been worth a fortune. Did you notify the vendors in the event about this? Best wishes on finding your cards.

[Lemnear]

So about 160 Duals returning to the market... lol

With all given respect, carry around 20k $ or more to an event is outright provoking theft, especially presenting those in your car in front of the event Hall or such :/

[workingdude]

So about 160 Duals returning to the market... lol

With all given respect, carry around 20k $ or more to an event is outright provoking theft, especially presenting those in your car in front of the event Hall or such :/

A lesson to everybody that eli must pay. Don't carry cards with you, just to carry cards with you. The fact that there is 100K in his car that he probably couldn't even take into the event hall is just confusing.

A few more questions. Was this his personal collection? Were these cards insured?

[mini1337s]

Ah, the classic "she dressed like a slut so she deserved to get raped" argument.

I'm sorry for your friend's loss. Hopefully he will recover the cards.

[Philipp2293]

It is very sad indeed and I hope for the very best but could you tell me one reason to bring such a big load of money/cards to a tournament?

Greetings

Afaik Eli Kassis is a dealer.

[phonics]

It sucks but with all the car break ins that always happen at bigger tournaments, it seems silly to leave a small fortune in your car.

[workingdude]

Afaik Eli Kassis is a dealer.

You can't deal at SCG tournaments:

The following things are not permitted at this event.
-Buying/selling cards with anyone except for our authorized dealers(s)
-Soliciting to buy/sell cards nearby (including via social media such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
-Using suitcases, handcarts, luggage carts, etc. for the purpose of transporting excessive amounts of trade stock.

[(nameless one)]

This only shows what everyone is willing to do for a simple game.


It is very sad indeed and I hope for the very best but could you tell me one reason to bring such a big load of money/cards to a tournament?

Greetings

He was there to sell those cards. I don't know him personally but if you know one thing or two about the Legacy community, Eli is a known around the world of Legacy as a card dealer in the north east United States.

That's like saying "let's blame bank's armored vehicles for getting robbed for transporting money". Being ignorant doesn't help anyone.



You can't deal at SCG tournaments:

The following things are not permitted at this event.
-Buying/selling cards with anyone except for our authorized dealers(s)
-Soliciting to buy/sell cards nearby (including via social media such as Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
-Using suitcases, handcarts, luggage carts, etc. for the purpose of transporting excessive amounts of trade stock.


But trading is permitted.

Dealers don't just buy/sell. They try to broaden the value of their inventory and seeking what they need depending on what the market wants.

[nedleeds]

He's a dealer who breaks the rules and deals at their events. I see him at every SCG, I don't think he really made any attempt to hide his purpose to his credit. I remember a kid trying to trade a revised Volcanic off him and having an Underground Sea to trade ... and him asking for more stuff in the trade, the confused kid thought he meant the opposite (since Sea is / was worth a bit more than a Volcanic). Then he realized he was trading with a "dealer".

[TheInfamousBearAssassin]

Eli is and always has been a good guy, this sucks. He said they found some of the blood from the thief in the backseat, I hope they find him and nail him to the goddamn wall.


So about 160 Duals returning to the market... lol

With all given respect, carry around 20k $ or more to an event is outright provoking theft, especially presenting those in your car in front of the event Hall or such :/

No one asked for your ignorant victim-blaming opinion. Saying "With all due respect" in front of a sentence actually doesn't negate being a douchebag.

With all due respect.

[menace13]

Sorry to hear that. Losing that amount is devastating. Hope they are caught, as this should be Grand Larceny and is a Felony.

The thieves aren't just random breaking into cars, they are scouting. They knew who he was, and they know his car. There is no legal security at these events, no one should leave thousands of dollars behind a glass window unattended, even more of a target is a known dealer.

[monovfox]

This really sucks QQ. Although, he probably should have brought a little less. Still, it's a warning to people with expensive collections: never let them out of sight.

I really feel sorry for the dude, and I am sad that I won't be able to acquire Foil Japanese DnT off of him come december.

[WorstBandNameEver]

Ah, the classic "she dressed like a slut so she deserved to get raped" argument.

I'm sorry for your friend's loss. Hopefully he will recover the cards.

Comparing rape and card theft is pretty rough I think.

Bummed for his guy but I would have never left that out in a car. There needs to be a better way to keep your stuff safe at that level. Hopefully he has insurance or something.

[lordofthepit]

Burglars and thiefs are scum. While I'm far from an NRA member, it always makes me happy to hear a burglar or robber got shot by his victim in the commission of his crime. Saves us all the trouble of paying for his food and shelter in prison, as well as the legal expenses for finding public defenders for these useless wastes of oxygen.

Hope they catch the perp.

[thecrav]

No one asked for your ignorant victim-blaming opinion. Saying "With all due respect" in front of a sentence actually doesn't negate being a douchebag.
With all due respect.

I totally remember this scene from Talladega Nights. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Af-Id_fuXFA&t=18s)


Comparing rape and card theft is pretty rough I think.
Bummed for his guy but I would have never left that out in a car.

Agreed times a million


There needs to be a better way to keep your stuff safe at that level. Hopefully he has insurance or something.

There is: Keep it on you. If the rumors that he's dealing are true, than he likely already had as much stuff as he could be allowed in with on his person. While I don't want to blame the victim, hey man, karma's a bitch.

[Mr.C]

Ouch, that sounds extremely painful.

But very likely he had some sort of insurance, right?

[WorstBandNameEver]

For those who are interested, here is a list copied from a thread on salvation with cards and prices. It totals to about $75,000 or so.

1x beta lotus MP+ $2,500
1x unlimited lotus SP+ $1,350
1x beta mox Sapphire mp $800
1x beta mox sapphire SP $950
1x beta mox jet SP $850
1x beta mox jet MP $650
1x beta mox ruby SP- $600
1x beta mox pearl mp $550
1x alpha time vault SP $750
1x beta mox emerald MP+ $600
1x beta Ancestral recall MP $750
1x beta time walk MP $650
16 underground sea $2,400
14 tundra $1,400
17 volcanic island $1,700
3 unlimited taiga MP $150
14 Tropical island $1,400
7x japanese foil must rainforest $2,800
4x japanese foil bloodstained mire $2,000
4x japanese foil wooded foothills $2,000
4x japanese foil arid Mesa $600
4x japanese foil marsh flats $600
3x japanese foil tarmogoyf $3000
2x Miscut badlands $1000
2x Miscut savannah $1,500
3x Miscut underground sea $5,600
1x Miscut bayou $800
3x Miscut Taiga $1,950
3x Miscut tropical island $3,000
4x Miscut plateau $2,000
4x japanese foil academy rector $450
4x Korean natural order $300
16x force of will $1,280
30 FWB German Duals (mixed) $2,000
40 death rite shamans $480
4 foil death rite shaman $200
4x foil japanese lord of Atlantis timespiral $160
4x japanese foil merrow reejery $100
4x foil wasteland $440
8x beta tundra SP$6,400
2x beta badlands nm-$1,000
2x beta Savannah nm- $1,200
1x beta underground sea MP $750
1x Fbb plateau $110
2x japanese foil knight of the reliquary $300
8x japanese foil burning wish $1,200
20x Ravnica/guild pact/dissension japanese foil shock lands $2,000
1x unlimited time twister $200
1x library of Alexandria $175
2x japanese foil goblin Welder $400
1x japanese foil grim Monolith
$250
3x Miscut Birds of paradise $450
4x japanese foil pattern or rebirth .$140
4x japanese foil nimble mongoose $300
1x japanese foil batterskull $60
1x japanese foil sword of feast and famine $120
1x japanese foil sword of war and peace $60
1x japanese foil sword of body and mind $50
4x Eureka NM, SP, MP, MP $300
2x English mana drain $250
1x Italian mana drain $100
4x Korean grindstone $160
1x japanese foil snapcaster Mage $175
4x japanese survival of the fittest $100
3x Korean survival of the fittest $120
3x japanese foil engineered explosives $600
4x japanese foil mox opal $400
100 assorted Miscut basics revised $8,000 at least

[Koby]

Comparing rape and card theft is pretty rough I think.

Bummed for his guy but I would have never left that out in a car. There needs to be a better way to keep your stuff safe at that level. Hopefully he has insurance or something.

I have to wonder about this statement.

SCG events are run with the business model that SCG is the only vendor in the room.

Kassis has tens of thousands of dollars of inventory at the event, for which purpose specifically?
Is the intent to make deals out in the parking lot (which is technically legal, but also shady).

What exactly does such a move (bringing inventory) achieve if he himself intends to be inside and playing?

Yea it sucks that his property was stolen, but he wasn't necessarily taking precautions to keep it safe. The thief should be punished with the full force of the law; if caught. etc

[Giants1990]

Any idea what time of day this happened? What kind of car does Eli have and where was he parked?

[chinEsE girl]

I'll give out some more info since people are curious about how it happened.

Eli had brought his stuff since had a transaction set up with another dealer he was going to meet at the event. Obviously that didn't pan out. He also did a bunch of trading on Saturday, which involved some of his really high end stuff. He wasn't bringing his stuff to undermine star city.

As for the stuff he had, it was locked in the trunk, definitely not out in the open or visible. In fact, he didn't bring out any of his cards in the morning. The thief knew before hand what car Eli drove, as well as to wait for the team sealed event to start to pull the heist. In addition they knew to not open the door after breaking the window, and that everything was in the trunk.

Also, this was a very specific attack to steal cards that Eli had. I rode down with him and had my cards in the trunk as well. Now my collection isn't on the same level as Eli's, but it's still worth about 20-30 grand. By the looks of it they had no idea that it was even there. They only grabbed Eli's binders and a few boxes and left the rest behind. So they knew which car to hit, and exactly which bags they needed to grab in a short time period so that they weren't caught. This was planned out by people who have done this sort of thing before. I'm just counting myself as incredibly lucky that none of my stuff was taken during the theft.

[T-ORGANIZER]

Guess I need to defend myself since lots of you have extreme opinions with zero facts. I did not buy nor sell any cards at the event and I did not have any intent on doing so either. I carry a suitcase to transport the cards because I am recovering from a broken ankle and its the only way I can transport them. I like to trade and I like to do big trades in volume, I can't do that profitably if I do not bring my cards.

Do I try to profit from trading, yes. I owned a store for a long time, a lot of people do it. Also a HP Underground sea has been worth less than a NM Volcanic Island for a long time up until its recent hike.

I drive a BMW and they were locked in my Trunk, which could not be forcibly opened, they reached their hand through the back seat and took whatever would fit through.

I tried to insure them on several occasions, but it is not an easy under taking with magical cards.

Really liked the Rape reference by the way, kudo's. For those of you who want to support your community keep spreading the word and being on the lookout. Hopefully one day I can return the favor if the unfortunate should happen to you.

[Megadeus]

He's a dealer who breaks the rules and deals at their events. I see him at every SCG, I don't think he really made any attempt to hide his purpose to his credit. I remember a kid trying to trade a revised Volcanic off him and having an Underground Sea to trade ... and him asking for more stuff in the trade, the confused kid thought he meant the opposite (since Sea is / was worth a bit more than a Volcanic). Then he realized he was trading with a "dealer".

Seems.... Bad. How did people possibly trade with him then?

And I mean I feel bad, but agreed on why you would leave all that in your car. Thats a lot of shit to leave unattended. Breaking a car window for 25K of magic cards is a small price...

And dont act like you dont know people that are "dealers" at SCG opens and such... Everyone knows who to go to locally for anything that they need.

Edit: I now understand the whole situation. If the details of the theft were presented at the beginning you may have not had as many negative comments. Living here in GA I doubt Ill see any of this and even if I do I probably wont recognize it, but if I do...

[Michael Keller]

Eli had brought his stuff since had a transaction set up with another dealer he was going to meet at the event. Obviously that didn't pan out.

Eric, is it all possible that the dealer that Eli had a transaction setup with could have been in on it?

Just covering all bases here. Seems kind of sketchy that he loses all that stuff the same weekend he has what sounds like a massive transaction setup to begin with.

[Megadeus]

Eric, is it all possible that the dealer that Eli had a transaction setup with could have been in on it?

Just covering all bases here. Seems kind of sketchy that he loses all that stuff the same weekend he has what sounds like a massive transaction setup to begin with.

This.

[Mr.C]

Eric, is it all possible that the dealer that Eli had a transaction setup with could have been in on it?

Just covering all bases here. Seems kind of sketchy that he loses all that stuff the same weekend he has what sounds like a massive transaction setup to begin with.

That's what came to my mind too. Maybe I'm too paranoid.

[goblinsplayer]

Eric, is it all possible that the dealer that Eli had a transaction setup with could have been in on it?

Just covering all bases here. Seems kind of sketchy that he loses all that stuff the same weekend he has what sounds like a massive transaction setup to begin with.

Yeah, it seems a bit suspicious to me that the robber knew exactly what to do when stealing those cards

[feline]

It might sound a bit silly, but one rule of thumb I always try to remember is this:

If what you're leaving in the car is worth more than the car itself, don't leave it in the car. As far as the specific individual who was stolen from in this case, I hope they get back what they lost because when someone has something stolen from them, they usually just want to get their stuff back more than anything else. Best of luck to those & to anyone who's ever had this happen to them.

[phonics]

Yeah, it seems a bit suspicious to me that the robber knew exactly what to do when stealing those cards

Sad to say that if this is the case, they are probably arent your run of the mill theives that will try and dump the cards asap, making it much harder to recover them.

[Mr.C]

Guess I need to defend myself since lots of you have extreme opinions with zero facts. I did not buy nor sell any cards at the event and I did not have any intent on doing so either. I carry a suitcase to transport the cards because I am recovering from a broken ankle and its the only way I can transport them. I like to trade and I like to do big trades in volume, I can't do that profitably if I do not bring my cards.

Do I try to profit from trading, yes. I owned a store for a long time, a lot of people do it. Also a HP Underground sea has been worth less than a NM Volcanic Island for a long time up until its recent hike.

I drive a BMW and they were locked in my Trunk, which could not be forcibly opened, they reached their hand through the back seat and took whatever would fit through.

I tried to insure them on several occasions, but it is not an easy under taking with magical cards.

Really liked the Rape reference by the way, kudo's. For those of you who want to support your community keep spreading the word and being on the lookout. Hopefully one day I can return the favor if the unfortunate should happen to you.

Wait, through the backseat? Do you drive like a 330 or something? I haven't seen any BMWs yet with fold-down seats, just curious.

[sdematt]

Eli, I feel for you loss. See what you can get out of the insurance company anyway, even if it's only 5 or 10k. It might be covered somewhat under your homeowners/car policy. I know the collection you had was pretty great, considering I traded for Beta duals with you at Providence.

But, let's be vigilant and keep on the lookout (luckily) for these somewhat unique items. The more common but expensive stuff is hard to track, but if you could post pictures of the rarer items, like Miscuts or Beta duals, the community can keep an eye on what's happening.

-Matt

[kratos]

Eric, is it all possible that the dealer that Eli had a transaction setup with could have been in on it?

Just covering all bases here. Seems kind of sketchy that he loses all that stuff the same weekend he has what sounds like a massive transaction setup to begin with.

This is the first thing that came to my mind as well. Seems a little sketchy.

I hope that these cards are recovered and returned to Eli. It's things like this that make me want to just sell out of the game and wash my hands of it. I hate that there are people in this community that would stoop to this level.

[feline]

People who put enough time into actually doing what it takes to actually pull something like this off aren't true members of the community, they are just thieves sneaking in.

[Mr.C]

People who put enough time into actually doing what it takes to actually pull something like this off aren't true members of the community, they are just thieves sneaking in.

Not when you're targeting things that are, if not very unique, then very difficult to come across and dump without anyone being suspicious.

[Oiolosse]

Fucking SCG. This has happened too many times. You can hire a cop for about $50/hr. 4 cops = 200 bucks an hour...that ain't shit for those guys to ensure security.

[Lemnear]

Ah, the classic "she dressed like a slut so she deserved to get raped" argument.

I'm sorry for your friend's loss. Hopefully he will recover the cards.

So let me set this straight: A well-known trader takes his unsecured/undersecured Collection to an event for deals in the parking lot and the cards got stolen instead.

I'm sorry, but that behaviour is as irresponsible as handing weapons to kids and let them basically play with those without surveillance (http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/01/us/kentucky-accidential-shooting)

P.S.: Your argument for the case is disgusting to draw parallels

[jamesh]

3x japanese foil tarmogoyf $3000


ouch

[TheInfamousBearAssassin]

So let me set this straight: A well-known trader takes his unsecured/undersecured Collection to an event for deals in the parking lot and the cards got stolen instead.

I'm sorry, but that behaviour is as irresponsible as handing weapons to kids and let them basically play with those without surveillance (http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/01/us/kentucky-accidential-shooting)

P.S.: Your argument for the case is disgusting to draw parallels

The only thing that's disgusting is your lack of any fundamental morals, empathy, or basic fucking common sense. It's not just pathetic, it's actively embarrassing to watch you try to say that bringing cards to an event for a trade is like handing kids a gun. Do you even stop to think about what you're spewing into the screen, or are you just rolling a D100 table here to generate vile nonsense?

[swoop]

Having your cards on your person is not the same as giving guns.

Leaving those cards in a car trunk is. People knew he had shitloads of cards. This wasn't done by a random, this was done by someone who knew what they're getting at.
Take care of your stuff people, especially 75k$ worth of stuff.

Doubt it you would leave it in a park bench and then wonder why it got stolen.

[TheInfamousBearAssassin]

Having your cards on your person is not the same as giving guns.

Leaving those cards in a car trunk is. People knew he had shitloads of cards. This wasn't done by a random, this was done by someone who knew what they're getting at.
Take care of your stuff people, especially 75k$ worth of stuff.

Doubt it you would leave it in a park bench and then wonder why it got stolen.

Leaving your stuff in your car trunk, in your car, which is locked, in a public parking lot is now the same as leaving it on a bench and asking for it.

You are scraping hard to reach new levels of morbidly retarded.

[Lemnear]

The only thing that's disgusting is your lack of any fundamental morals, empathy, or basic fucking common sense. It's not just pathetic, it's actively embarrassing to watch you try to say that bringing cards to an event for a trade is like handing kids a gun. Do you even stop to think about what you're spewing into the screen, or are you just rolling a D100 table here to generate vile nonsense?

I was talking about irresponsibility. Questioning MY moral after other people draw parallels between theft and rape is embarassing. My empathy in both cases is limited to the young boy, realizing one day that he has accidently done because his parents and government neither protect him or his sister.

The question mark remains, why those cards weren't (proper) secured

[PirateKing]

The question mark remains, why those cards weren't (proper) secured

I question what would constitute a proper securement in your mind, if not locked in the truck of a vehicle?

[Lemnear]

I question what would constitute a proper securement in your mind, if not locked in the truck of a vehicle?

Effect an insurance policy for theft, fire- and water-damage for a certain insured volume worth of cards? We had 1-2 threads about that on this board

[PirateKing]

Effect an insurance policy for theft, fire- and water-damage for a certain insured volume worth of cards?

I don't follow. You suggest the victim was partially culpable in the theft due to irresponsibly securing his cards in the locked trunk of their vehicle.
And it sounds like you further suggest the responsible alternative would be to secure the cards in the truck of their car while simultaneously maintaining policy covering damages by theft.

Is it your intent to suggest that by maintaining this policy of insurance, that it would have deterred the theft at all?

I mean, to mitigate loss, sure; but that wasn't the topic at hand. It was whether or not the trunk of a vehicle constituted a reasonably secure holding.

[SBGpinas]

Effect an insurance policy for theft, fire- and water-damage for a certain insured volume worth of cards? We had 1-2 threads about that on this board

Good luck finding an insurance company willing to insure a high amount on trading cards.

Despite our community numbering in the hundreds of thousands, or even millions, Magic the Gathering is still somewhat of a niche collectible. Everybody knows a couple of dozen people who have never heard of it and would scoff at the idea of a $5000 piece of cardboard that isn't a baseball card.

[PirateKing]

Good luck finding an insurance company willing to insure a high amount on trading cards.

Despite our community numbering in the hundreds of thousands, or even millions, Magic the Gathering is still somewhat of a niche collectible. Everybody knows a couple of dozen people who have never heard of it and would scoff at the idea of a $5000 piece of cardboard that isn't a baseball card.

More likely, would be an insurance policy with some pretty severe restrictions towards use. Baseball cards or other high value collectables are pretty easy to insure because they are pretty much static items. Keep your signed first print run #1 some and such comic book framed over your mantle? Pretty safe from a loss standpoint.

Tell an insurance company that you have thousands of dollars in items that you intend to cart all over town and expose to lots and lots of people, or worse yet, that you maintain as an active deck that involves dozens of people physically interacting with on a near weekly basis. That's a massive risk.

More likely I can insure my decks on the agreement I keep them in a safe and never take them out.

[SBGpinas]

more likely, would be an insurance policy with some pretty severe restrictions towards use. Baseball cards or other high value collectables are pretty easy to insure because they are pretty much static items. Keep your signed first print run #1 some and such comic book framed over your mantle? Pretty safe from a loss standpoint.

Tell an insurance company that you have thousands of dollars in items that you intend to cart all over town and expose to lots and lots of people, or worse yet, that you maintain as an active deck that involves dozens of people physically interacting with on a near weekly basis. That's a massive risk.

More likely i can insure my decks on the agreement i keep them in a safe and never take them out.

qft.

The nature of Magic Cards is that they will inevitably be handled by several people in a relatively short timespan.

Try explaining that to your Insurance Agent, see if he doesn't laugh at the idea of insuring your collection.

[kiblast]

The level of foolish randomness reached in this thread i unmatchable I think. Seriously guys try to count to 10 before writing bullshit just because you are behind a screen on the other side of the planet.
Feel sorry for Eli Kassis, hope he can menage to track down at least some of the most recognizable misprints/foils.

[Lemnear]

I don't follow. You suggest the victim was partially culpable in the theft due to irresponsibly securing his cards in the locked trunk of their vehicle.
And it sounds like you further suggest the responsible alternative would be to secure the cards in the truck of their car while simultaneously maintaining policy covering damages by theft.

Is it your intent to suggest that by maintaining this policy of insurance, that it would have deterred the theft at all?

I mean, to mitigate loss, sure; but that wasn't the topic at hand. It was whether or not the trunk of a vehicle constituted a reasonably secure holding.

My topic was having the loss covered by an insurance company or such. He can't do much more than store them in a locked trunk. Even if that won't hold off serious thiefs, it is enough to make the insurance company Pay for the loss which would be my biggest concern as a dealer. From what I've heared and read he did not have such an insurance while being a Professional card dealer which is irresponsible or my taste and pretty common for dealers and players with a serious collection

[chinEsE girl]

Eric, is it all possible that the dealer that Eli had a transaction setup with could have been in on it?

Just covering all bases here. Seems kind of sketchy that he loses all that stuff the same weekend he has what sounds like a massive transaction setup to begin with.

Yeah we've considered the possibility. It was actually the first thig that came to several people's mind at the site when I was telling others what happened. According to Eli however it probably wasn't this other dealer. Eli says he is the nicest person he has ever met, plus he is independent wealthy and just does magic on the side. So he neither a scummy person or would do something risky like this for money. Thus the possibility of this other dealer being in on the theft is pretty low.

Honestly my guess is that this theft was carried out by the same group of people who were stealing cards on Saturday. There were several reported cases l theft at the standard portion, so they beefed up the convention hall security, but only on the inside of the convention center. Unfortunately all staff present were either making sure there was no cheating going on during deck reg and construction, and security was making sure no one left the building with stuff that didn't belong to them like the previous day. That left the parking lot open for someone to use more extreme measures to commit theft.

[Tammit67]

Doesn't seem unlikely to me you'll get these back, Eli. How the hell can someone unload this even close to quickly?

[Arsenal]

From what chinEsE girl has said, these thieves don't sound like first time amateurs. As such, I suspect they'll be very careful when trying to sell off these cards.

[Esper3k]

My topic was having the loss covered by an insurance company or such. He can't do much more than store them in a locked trunk. Even if that won't hold off serious thiefs, it is enough to make the insurance company Pay for the loss which would be my biggest concern as a dealer. From what I've heared and read he did not have such an insurance while being a Professional card dealer which is irresponsible or my taste and pretty common for dealers and players with a serious collection

If you're a dealer or move a lot of product, I would say that insurance is actually something that's likely pretty unfeasible to do on a regular basis since you generally need to individually declare everything that you're covering and then take pictures, show value, etc.

If you have a static collection that doesn't change much, sure. If your stock is constantly changing, I don't think insuring it is something that is going to be doable.

[Darkenslight]

I question what would constitute a proper securement in your mind, if not locked in the truck of a vehicle?

Probably the equivalent of a mobile gun safe, such as those in SWAT vehicles.

Whilst I feel really sorry for the guy, it smacks of a hit-and-run job done by7 people who know what these cards are actually worth. And yes, I hope to high heaven that those cards were insured and can be claimed, but DAMN, those premiums will skyrocket!

[Jim Higginbottom]

@Lemnear. jealous much? Trades in the range of $5-10k aren't as uncommon as you'd think and large events like SCG opens and GPs are where they happen.

Flames removed. Take it easy. -zilla

[Lemnear]

@Lemnear. jealous much? You sound like a moron. Trades in the range of $5-10k aren't as uncommon as you'd think and large events like SCG opens and GPs are where they happen.

Yeah moving cards for 11 grand prior to Bazaar of Moxen 7 leaves me sure being jealous lol. Point is: getting an insurance for a Magic Collection isn't impossible, having one myself. For the US you may contact those:

http://www.collectinsure.com/

http://www.thefia.com/html/collectibles.html

[Tammit67]

From what chinEsE girl has said, these thieves don't sound like first time amateurs. As such, I suspect they'll be very careful when trying to sell off these cards.

Fair, but a large portion of the MTG community/dealers know what has happened and the collection isn't just a bunch of standard cards that are hard to distinguish.

Hell, I got a text about the theft before 12:30 pm on Sunday and I am not exactly a priority contact. Everyone knows about this. anything they try to get rid of is going to be scrutinized.

[Arianrhod]

Fair, but a large portion of the MTG community/dealers know what has happened and the collection isn't just a bunch of standard cards that are hard to distinguish.

Hell, I got a text about the theft before 12:30 pm on Sunday and I am not exactly a priority contact. Everyone knows about this. anything they try to get rid of is going to be scrutinized.

This. Some of it is a regional bias -- Eli's a pretty big name in the legacy scene up this way, and anyone who's played Eli (or seen him play) knows that Eli's collection isn't like average peoples' collections.

Obviously the happy ending needs to happen, but part of me thinks that the thieves made a serious mistake by stealing Eli's stuff -- the specificity of it will make it a nightmare to get rid of, and basically everyone in the Northeast is looking out for it now.

[Oiolosse]

Well, if the collection is really worth that much then flying to Europe to dump some card board is a marginal expense.

Somebody else said it first, but a mobile safe for that amount of money is, like, necessary. I mean, if the collection was really worth 50k+ then why the hell not. Would you lock 50k dollars in cash in your trunk?? Fuck no, nowhere in the world would I do that. I wouldn't leave it in my car in my garage. I hope they find those fuckers though.

[Lemnear]

Well, if the collection is really worth that much then flying to Europe to dump some card board is a marginal expense.

Somebody else said it first, but a mobile safe for that amount of money is, like, necessary. I mean, if the collection was really worth 50k+ then why the hell not. Would you lock 50k dollars in cash in your trunk?? Fuck no, nowhere in the world would I do that. I wouldn't leave it in my car in my garage. I hope they find those fuckers though.

Maybe someone can offer pictures of the easy-to-spot miscuts/etc. so we can help having an eye on eBay or the European Sales market?

[Arsenal]

Lol @ the victim blaming in here. Dudes are like "what son? you didn't haul your stuff around in a Brinks armored truck? lmao, you deserved to have your stuff jacked!"... please.

[menace13]

Maybe someone can offer pictures of the easy-to-spot miscuts/etc. so we can help having an eye on eBay or the European Sales market?
Most likely mass dump of something that large in value would be BOM this week. Thousands of people there for eternal magic, most won't recognize the sellers, or the stolen cards.

[T-ORGANIZER]

So let me set this straight: A well-known trader takes his unsecured/undersecured Collection to an event for deals in the parking lot and the cards got stolen instead.

I'm sorry, but that behaviour is as irresponsible as handing weapons to kids and let them basically play with those without surveillance (http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/01/us/kentucky-accidential-shooting)

P.S.: Your argument for the case is disgusting to draw parallels

You are an idiot, I did not perform a single trade in the parking lot. I did not do a single thing to get the rules broken. The parallel is quite accurate and you sir are a victim accuser. You should feel ashamed of yourself.

[Lemnear]

You are an idiot, I did not perform a single trade in the parking lot. I did not do a single thing to get the rules broken. The parallel is quite accurate and you sir are a victim accuser. You should feel ashamed of yourself.

You can continue to call me names and I won't take it personal because I understand your current anger, but I don't buy the story of having +50k $ of cardboard taken to a SCG location (or the parking lot in front of the location) without the intention to sell those.

My offer to assist you watching the market in case the thieves try to dump the cards, still stands non the less.

[Mr.C]

How big was the suitcase and what car was it? Was it actually feasible to pull it through the back seat without popping the trunk? All the BMWs I've seen that have folding rear seats (only 3 series, and those are tight) need the trunk to be opened to access the levers to fold down the rear seat; I haven't seen anyone be able to pop it from the inside.

Again, just curious and making sure you're not missing any angles here, which happens a lot in this kind of situation.

Edit: To be more specific, here's the part I'm wondering about:


I drive a BMW and they were locked in my Trunk, which could not be forcibly opened, they reached their hand through the back seat and took whatever would fit through.


Reason is, I had a friend with a broken trunk lock mechanism on an E92, and we weren't able to fold down his seats from the inside; ended up having to do it the hard way (getting power to one of the solenoids under the glovebox, iirc).

[Ziveeman]

Sorry for your loss Eli. I really hope you can find the thief and your cards. People who do this are disgusting.

[Oiolosse]

Lol @ the victim blaming in here. Dudes are like "what son? you didn't haul your stuff around in a Brinks armored truck? lmao, you deserved to have your stuff jacked!"... please.

Uhh, drive to academy and spend 200 dollars..that's less than 1% of the value of the collection. Killer deal if you ask me.

[Arsenal]

Uhh, drive to academy and spend 200 dollars..that's less than 1% of the value of the collection. Killer deal if you ask me.

I don't know what "Academy" is... I assume it to be a retailer of some sort? And if this is a retailer, what would I be spending $200 on? Your post is very vague and unhelpful.

[Moosedog]

With blatant targeted theft a reality and the price of cards continuing to rise. Are people considering GPS trackers ?

[zulander]

I don't know what "Academy" is... I assume it to be a retailer of some sort? And if this is a retailer, what would I be spending $200 on? Your post is very vague and unhelpful.

It's a sportings good store, I assume he meant to buy a mobile safe.

Dude Eli that blows man :(

One thing you could do is to setup automatic ebay searches with the cards that were stolen and cross-reference any matching items.

[Malchar]

Even if you can't get a real policy from an insurance company, you can still buy your own "insurance". Spending a few hundred dollars on a mobile safe is probably a much better investment than a real insurance policy anyway. It's just a one-time cost, and it actually mitigates the damages whereas an insurance policy would accomplish neither.

[mini1337s]

A safe for you car? Really? If they can break into your trunk, they can remove your portable safe and it doesn't take a rocket-scientist to use a crowbar and a hammer to open it up.

Love the instant victim blaming. I'm sure you would appreciate it if someone stole your cards. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR CARDS IN A SAFETY DEPOSIT BOX ALL THE TIME?! YOU DESERVE TO HAVE YOUR COLLECTION STOLEN!"

[jamied1981]

Hey eli sorry for your loss. But For Anyone Who Has This Much Inventoy In Their Car, There Is Something You Can Do.

A Safe In Your Car Is Doable. My Buddies Who Have Dealt With Some Not So Legal Items had Safes Installed In There Trunk. Fire Proof Welded In. Definitly Not Smash And Grab. Just Something To Think About For Others With Collections.

[SBGpinas]

A safe for you car? Really? If they can break into your trunk, they can remove your portable safe and it doesn't take a rocket-scientist to use a crowbar and a hammer to open it up.

This.

Dedicated thieves will always find a way...

Hell, I know someone who brings around safe-pacs all the time (the bags with a buttload of security features), but he's had an experience when the wire mesh underlining was cut with pliers just to get access to his stuff. Luckily, nothing was stolen, but having physical security measures like a safe isn't exactly a deterrent, especially when what's on the line is more than what a lot of people make in a year.

So to all those douchebags blaming the victim here, I hope karma goes your way so you finally learn how idiotic your statements are.

[Oiolosse]

A safe for you car? Really? If they can break into your trunk, they can remove your portable safe and it doesn't take a rocket-scientist to use a crowbar and a hammer to open it up.

Love the instant victim blaming. I'm sure you would appreciate it if someone stole your cards. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR CARDS IN A SAFETY DEPOSIT BOX ALL THE TIME?! YOU DESERVE TO HAVE YOUR COLLECTION STOLEN!"

You just bolt it to somewhere in your trunk. Oh, and fill it with rabid vermin...really, you guys think this is victim blaming. You need to view this as a lesson to secure your valuables better. No one here has said, "good for you for not securing your shit" or "he had it coming"...it fucking sucks and I hope the thieves get theirs but it still serves as a lesson to secure your collection. Is that unreasonable?

Wait, I just read the second half of your third sentence. Crowbar, hammer? No way man.

haha, hell yeah.
http://www.hightech-edge.com/wp-content/uploads/trophy-strike.jpg

[Darkenslight]

A safe for you car? Really? If they can break into your trunk, they can remove your portable safe and it doesn't take a rocket-scientist to use a crowbar and a hammer to open it up.

Love the instant victim blaming. I'm sure you would appreciate it if someone stole your cards. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T HAVE YOUR CARDS IN A SAFETY DEPOSIT BOX ALL THE TIME?! YOU DESERVE TO HAVE YOUR COLLECTION STOLEN!"

I'm merely suggesting future ways of protecting those kinds of things - and the gun safe is directly modded to be integrated to the vehicle, so that you'd need some serious gear (and time) to pull it off.

[Lemnear]

A 100% protection against theft and robbery is an illusion. A safe in your trunk is worth shit in the later situation. All you can do is covering potential losses

[leegoo]

Hope it all turns out alright. Will definitely be keeping an eye out.

[akuma1623]

This is a terrible thing that has happened but I wanted to expand on something someone stated before. There were numerous thefts on Saturday and I can assume that is why they started the wristband policy on Sunday. This is good to a point. In Yugioh they have numbers on the bands and they match the one they put on your bag also, the ones used sunday were just colored and no way to tell if it is your bag or not by the band.

The sad part is I went Saturday to do some trading and selling to SCG , same thing Sunday. On Saturday I noticed many players at the event who were banned from Yugioh events and the the game by Konami for things such as cheating and theft. Many of them were banned for theft at Shonen Jump and YCS events . It is a shame how all these players who get banned in one game just move over to another game and continue their crimes. It should be allowed that players who are banned for major offenses like theft and violence be banned from every game. Cheating is a lot harder to do that with.

[Malchar]

A safe for you car? Really? If they can break into your trunk, they can remove your portable safe and it doesn't take a rocket-scientist to use a crowbar and a hammer to open it up.

Actually, you can bolt the safe to the floor of your trunk so that it can't be removed so easily. The bolts should be on the inside of the safe. This way, if you can open the safe, you can quickly unscrew the bolts to transport the safe. This is how most safes are setup in a person's house. Also, any good safe is specifically designed not to be opened with a crowbar.

Sure, you can theoretically break through anything given enough time. The idea is to make the thieves waste so much time that it will draw attention. The best you can really hope for is that they have to spend half an hour using power tools to dismantle your car. In a public parking lot, I have to assume that that will be good enough.

[r3dd09]

This is a terrible thing that has happened but I wanted to expand on something someone stated before. There were numerous thefts on Saturday and I can assume that is why they started the wristband policy on Sunday. This is good to a point. In Yugioh they have numbers on the bands and they match the one they put on your bag also, the ones used sunday were just colored and no way to tell if it is your bag or not by the band.

The sad part is I went Saturday to do some trading and selling to SCG , same thing Sunday. On Saturday I noticed many players at the event who were banned from Yugioh events and the the game by Konami for things such as cheating and theft. Many of them were banned for theft at Shonen Jump and YCS events . It is a shame how all these players who get banned in one game just move over to another game and continue their crimes. It should be allowed that players who are banned for major offenses like theft and violence be banned from every game. Cheating is a lot harder to do that with.

Did you bring this up to security?

[Lemnear]

Actually, you can bolt the safe to the floor of your trunk so that it can't be removed so easily. The bolts should be on the inside of the safe. This way, if you can open the safe, you can quickly unscrew the bolts to transport the safe. This is how most safes are setup in a person's house. Also, any good safe is specifically designed not to be opened with a crowbar.

Sure, you can theoretically break through anything given enough time. The idea is to make the thieves waste so much time that it will draw attention. The best you can really hope for is that they have to spend half an hour using power tools to dismantle your car. In a public parking lot, I have to assume that that will be good enough.

That leaves you still with the problem that someone holds a knife at your throat and asks kindly for opening the safe. People did worse things for much less money. :/

The only "crowd" a safe holds in check are hit&run-thieves and amateurs

[sroncor1]

Was Edgar Flores there. I just always assume he is stealing. I miss the days when cheaters just cheated atyhe game but only tired to rip you off trading. Now the assholes like Flores and his crew and other like him you have to watch their cheatin during the game an their stealing of your shit too. Sorry to hear this.



Seth

[Megadeus]

That leaves you still with the problem that someone holds a knife at your throat and asks kindly for opening the safe. People did worse things for much less money. :/

The only "crowd" a safe holds in check are hit&run-thieves and amateurs

I mean what do you suggest we do? Everyone bring a gun and kevlar armor to a magic tourney?

If you are caught stealing? Euthanized.

[Dia_Bot]

@ Eli: I'm really sorry for your loss, I hope you will get your collection (or at least a fraction of it) back one way or another.
@ all the victim blamers: you should be ashamed of yourselves, just wait until something like this happens to you and see how you would like someone making such comments.

[lordofthepit]

Was Edgar Flores there. I just always assume he is stealing. I miss the days when cheaters just cheated atyhe game but only tired to rip you off trading. Now the assholes like Flores and his crew and other like him you have to watch their cheatin during the game an their stealing of your shit too. Sorry to hear this.



Seth

I've heard rumors that he was part of a thief ring, but where does this come from?

[bruizar]

I suggest that the banned players list is requested from Konami, then check which attendees were present / spotted at Sommerset, and go from there.

[Madmaniac21]

I suggest that the banned players list is requested from Konami, then check which attendees were present / spotted at Sommerset, and go from there.

SCG should use that list though to ban players going forward. Backwards looking with no thought beyond "in attendance"? No. Legal/ethical frowntown.

[sroncor1]

Well Flores is a known thief of Yuigioh and Magic cards along with a known cheater with a recent 6 month ban. he was thrown out of multiple sites here in the DC area.

Seth

[Lemnear]

Well Flores is a known thief of Yuigioh and Magic cards along with a known cheater with a recent 6 month ban. he was thrown out of multiple sites here in the DC area.

Seth

This is a delicate topic and I would resist spreading such rumors without proof.

[sroncor1]

None of that is rumors. And we as a community should be willing to police and call each other out for being fucking assholes. I don't cheat or steal but can be an ass sometimes and I'm ok people calling me on it. Dude is a scum bag. Bottom line. Take it for what it is. As are all the people that feel they need to cheat at a game to get a head and feel good about themselves.

Seth

[Jay_Gatz]

This is a delicate topic and I would resist spreading such rumors without proof.

There was enough proof to warrant a suspension from the DCI and being removed from multiple events multiple times under suspicion of theft so I'd say this is more than just a rumor.

[Malchar]

That leaves you still with the problem that someone holds a knife at your throat and asks kindly for opening the safe. People did worse things for much less money. :/

The only "crowd" a safe holds in check are hit&run-thieves and amateurs

If someone holds a knife to your throat then at least you'll be able to identify the criminal for police.

Obviously, it's not possible to prevent every crime, but it is possible to prevent some crimes. You can also create a situation where at least you have a chance of bringing the thief to justice.

[TraxDaMax]

75k worth of cards? Shit man...that's almost half my house!
Sorry to hear this dude. I usually don't go into that pimp zone when I'm looking for cards, but I'll keep an eye out for suspicious stuff.
In Europe though, we tend to use MKM as a way to obtain alot of our cards, and it's most unlikely I'll run into anything there.

Money is such an evil thing, it's amazing. It starts with a guy getting robbed into "You're an idiot"-type bullshit. I'll keep my opinion to myself before I unleash 37000 more lionrawrs worth of flames, which help Eli nothing at all.
In fact, the people getting flamed at are suggesting pretty decent things to look into for the future in my opinion, but hey I must be an idiot too I guess.

Rough times in the magic world, people getting robbed and killed for their cards. Next thing you know you're going to have to bring your glock to the GP.

[Lemnear]

If someone holds a knife to your throat then at least you'll be able to identify the criminal for police.

Obviously, it's not possible to prevent every crime, but it is possible to prevent some crimes. You can also create a situation where at least you have a chance of bringing the thief to justice.

If you're getting robbed by someone who doesn't even bother to disguise/mask himself to prevent you from identifying him, you'll sure have more of a problem that moment than "identifying the Guy" or "the worth of my cards".

Wouldn't be the first case in which peeps get killed for their cards which is something to think about. :/

[Oiolosse]

I mean what do you suggest we do? Everyone bring a gun and kevlar armor to a magic tourney?

If you are caught stealing? Euthanized.

Kennesaw Georgia FTW.

EDIT: Post 420 and my marijuana dealer won't call me back :(

[Megadeus]

Kennesaw Georgia FTW.

EDIT: Post 420 and my marijuana dealer won't call me back :(

Lol referencing the town I live in ftw. Fwiw that is not a strictly enforced law lol

[Oiolosse]

Euthanization or pot smoking?

[Megadeus]

Euthanization or pot smoking?

Eh nvm. Mis understood post.

[BooleanLobster]

I am recovering from a broken ankle

get well soon

[T-ORGANIZER]

You can continue to call me names and I won't take it personal because I understand your current anger, but I don't buy the story of having +50k $ of cardboard taken to a SCG location (or the parking lot in front of the location) without the intention to sell those.

My offer to assist you watching the market in case the thieves try to dump the cards, still stands non the less.

You are hilarious, Here you are accusing me with an unfounded idea. Then the next minute you are defending Edgar Flores!!! Saying we shouldn't sling unfounded rumors. Who are you Lemnear? I'd really like to know who is hiding behind that screen name.

[Esper3k]

Any updates on finding the guys who took the cards?

[Fry]

You are hilarious, Here you are accusing me with an unfounded idea. Then the next minute you are defending Edgar Flores!!! Saying we shouldn't sling unfounded rumors. Who are you Lemnear? I'd really like to know who is hiding behind that screen name.

I agree, would click a like button, but they don't exist here...

[PhanTom_lt]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mtg-Ultra-Rare-Revised-Dual-Land-Miscut-Connectors-/180950251755?hash=item2a2179b8eb

This looks like something from his list.

[death]

True, but that listing has been on ebay for a while, way before the incident occurred, iirc.