A Pokémon scalper was reportedly arrested and trespassed from a Target store in Lisbon, Connecticut, following a physical confrontation that occurred on August 28, 2026. The incident escalated when the scalper allegedly punched a man who was recording him and his companion with a cart full of Pokémon merchandise. This scuffle resulted in a four-year-old child falling and sustaining an elbow injury.
The confrontation began when the scalpers, who were reportedly ignoring Target's two-per-person purchase limit, were confronted by the individual recording them and his girlfriend. Footage of the incident, shared on social media by the account PokéStreetz, shows the verbal argument continuing as the scalpers approached the self-checkout. One of the scalpers then struck the recorder, causing him to drop his phone.
PokéStreetz claims that the recorder inadvertently fell into the young girl during the altercation. The scalper allegedly fled the scene after the punch, reportedly leaving his wallet behind. He is said to have returned later to retrieve it, at which point he was arrested and trespassed from the store. According to the account, the father of the injured child contacted the police after Target staff allegedly declined to intervene.
A local trading card player corroborated the event in a Facebook group for Pokémon drops, describing the situation at the Lisbon Target as a "nightmare." This incident is one of several reported during Pokémon's 30th Anniversary, a period marked by special collaborations and merchandise drops that have sometimes led to crowd issues.
While reports of the arrest and trespassing have circulated, official police records or local news reports confirming these details have not yet been located. The increased availability of cards for the 30th-anniversary set has reportedly impacted the profitability of scalping, with some scalpers expressing frustration over excess stock making rare cards easier to find.