PSA Graded Cards Worth $100K Stolen from FedEx Truck

What would you do if your entire trading card collection vanished overnight? That's the nightmare one collector is living after more than $100,000 worth of PSA-graded cards were stolen from a FedEx truck over the weekend.

On October 17, a collector known as SKY-B posted on Twitter/X that PSA had emailed him to say a FedEx truck carrying his 104-card collection had been burglarized after leaving its Southern California location. According to SKY-B, the stolen cards were worth over $100,000. PSA's email, which SKY-B shared, outlined the steps the company has taken: deactivating certificates for the affected items, notifying its commerce partners, and working with FedEx and law enforcement to investigate.

PSA also told SKY-B it would compensate him for the items involved, based on fair market value up to the Maximum Insured Value (MIV) he selected for each item. But SKY-B is worried. In a YouTube video, he explained that the stolen order took him more than two years to accumulate and included "many irreplaceable cards" he fears he'll never see again. He hand-delivered the cards to PSA to be graded at the National Card Show in July, and three months later, his collection could be lining the pockets of thieves.

SKY-B says he spent $8,000 to have the cards graded, and each had a maximum insurance value of $156,000. He claimed several cards exceeded that maximum value, but he wasn't "upcharged" by PSA—making him worry the company will "destroy" him with "low-ball values." "Honestly, that's what hurts the most, outside of obviously being absolutely financially destroyed here," he said. "...I am currently out all of the money that it cost to acquire these cards, I'm out all the PSA grading fees, and I don't have and I probably will never see any of these cards in person."

SKY-B wasn't the only victim. Content creator and fellow collector Boston Card Hunter said he was approached by a "major PSA dealer" who told him customers had lost an estimated "$500K of declared value." After speaking with other affected dealers and collectors, Boston Card Hunter stated that FedEx trucks have now become targets for thieves, and speculated that dealers might handle their own shipping and handling from PSA moving forward. He has compiled a list of 383 serialized cards allegedly stolen from the truck, including a 1995 Upper Deck 23K Gold Michael Jordan 50,000 Print Run and a 2024 One Piece Simplified Chinese 1st Anniversary Set Nami, plus many other cards from anime series, trading card games, and sports figures.

Over on Reddit, other collectors claimed to have been victims too, with one saying their PSA 9 Smaug the Magnificent card from Magic: The Gathering was burgled. In a statement to IGN, PSA reiterated its steps: "We are aware of a theft involving a third-party shipping vehicle carrying PSA-graded items. We are working closely with law enforcement and the carrier as the investigation continues. We have deactivated the certificates for the stolen items and notified marketplace partners so they can be on the lookout for rare and serialized items. Our customer service team has contacted affected customers directly and is arranging compensation based on fair market value. We understand the impact this has on collectors involved, many of whom see these cards as far more than a financial asset. Our team is focused on supporting them. We take this incident seriously, and we will continue working with law enforcement to hold those responsible accountable."

This theft is the latest viral moment in the card collecting community, following incidents where Pokemon TCG collectors offered to trade purebred puppies for cards at two separate card shows. What do you think—will this change how you ship your valuable cards? Let us know in the comments.