Pokemon addict is told ‘gotta sell ‘em all’

Antony Gallienne, 33, was described by his advocate as having an obsession with the cards. His collection was seized by police after he was arrested.

Gallienne, who at a previous hearing gave his address as The Wing, St Paul’s, Les Grandes Mielles Lane, Vale, admitted one count of defrauding the company while he was employed in one of its stores. At a separate hearing, he also admitted stealing Pokemon cards from local shops.

Advocate Jenny McVeigh, prosecuting, said that over a period of about two months he put through a total of 83 refunds, all on cigarettes and tobacco products.

The offences came to light when the shop manager noticed discrepancies with the stock records. Gallienne admitted taking the cash and said he had done so because he was badly in debt.

A search of his home resulted in police seizing a large collection of Pokemon cards, collectible coins and £990 in cash.

The value of the coins was put at about £143, but it was thought that the card collection could be worth several thousand pounds.

Receipts were found showing that Gallienne had spent several hundred pounds across various shops during the time of his offending.

Compensation of £12,150 was requested but Gallienne’s possessions, including the cash, would be returned to him.

His only other relevant conviction was for stealing Pokemon cards from a shop in 2019, for which he was fined.

Advocate Oliver Fattorini, defending, said that Gallienne had not known about the support that he could have accessed to help him at the time of the offences.

The defendant told the police that he had mistakenly put through a refund and when nobody noticed, he thought he could do it again.

Gallienne and his daughter lived with his extended family. The advocate told the court that Gallienne being sent to prison would have a severe impact on his daughter, who had communication problems.

He cited the case of a defendant who had been given a suspended sentence for a similar crime, given the impact that jail could have on their child.

This, coupled with a probation or supervision order, or a community service order, was suggested as an alternative to immediate custody.

Gallienne was prepared to sell the coins, hand over the cash and sell his substantial collection of Pokemon cards to pay any compensation, the court was told, but it would take time to realise the best possible value for them.

Judge Catherine Fooks said that Gallienne would be going to prison were it not for the impact this would have on his daughter.

The court would take the ‘exceptional course’ of imposing a community service order as a direct alternative to eight months’ prison.

He would also be subject to a three-year probation order and the judge said he would be offered support to help with child care and financial matters.

Gallienne was given three years to pay the compensation and Judge Fooks said the court expected that the collectibles would be sold.

In A separate Magistrate’s Court hearing, presided over by Judge Fooks, Gallienne also faced a charge of stealing Pokemon-related items from the Lexicon valued at £216.76.

She was asked by the prosecution to take into consideration the theft of items from Aladdin’s Cave.

For these offences he was sentenced to a further 40 hours’ community service as a direct alternative to a week in prison, to run concurrently.

Judge Fooks reiterated that Gallienne had to take on board that his obsession with collecting Pokemon cards and other items could see him go to prison if he did not take steps to address it.