Pokemon card thief, 8, caught third time in Rock Hill; mom tells store to call police

A Rock Hill mother whose 8-year-old son was caught in a store for the third time stealing Pokemon cards was asked by the store manager what she wanted to do.

The mother said call the cops.

In the incident Tuesday at a CVS store on Celanese Road in Rock Hill, the manager of the store allegedly caught the thief, age 8, with seven packs of Pokemon cards and another container of the cards, according to a report from the York County Sheriff’s Office.

The manager confronted the 8-year-old, asking where his parents were, and the child replied, “I don’t know,” the report said.

After locating the mother of the child in the store,, the mother “stated that her son had previously done this” and asked the manager “to contact the police,” the report said.

Deputies arrived, and the 8-year-old told officers that he took the cards because “that was the only way that he could have them,” the report said.

The mother told officers her son had taken cards before from Target and Walmart, and that police had contacted her about both thefts.

The items were turned over to the store manager.

Yet there was a happy ending - no charges were filed, police said.

Because the thief was “only 8 years old,” the report said.

This story was originally published January 27, 2017 at 2:10 PM with the headline "Pokemon card thief, 8, caught third time in Rock Hill; mom tells store to call police."