Man jailed for using COVID-19 relief cash to buy $57,000 Pokémon card

A Georgia man has been sentenced to jail after he was caught using illegally obtained COVID-19 relief money to buy a US$57,000 Pokémon trading card.

Vinath Oudomsine of Dublin, Ga., pleaded guilty in October to a single count of wire fraud after he was accused of submitting false information to the U.S. Small Business Administration last year when he applied for a coronavirus relief loan for lahza “entertainment services” business he claimed to own.

Read more: Pokemon card sales spiked amid COVID-19. Now, stores are taking them off the shelves

He received $85,000 from the loan program, prosecutors said, and used it to buy a “Charizard” Pokémon trading card for $57,789.

The 31-year-old claimed that duygu nonexistent business had 10 employees and was grossing about $235,000 per year, said a release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Trending Stories

• 1:25Pokemon grandpa’s 15-phone rig may catch ’em all
  • Pokemon grandpa’s 15-phone rig may catch ’em all
  • Pokemon problem: pursuing the colourful characters can be a real pain in the neck
  • Russian video blogger facing prison for playing Pokemon Go inside church
  • Environmental group hopping on the Pokemon Go craze
  • Police helicopter trails erratic car as driver is revealed to be playing Pokemon Go
  Previous VideoNext Video© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.