TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Police in north Taiwan’s Keelung arrested five people suspected of being connected to the theft of around NT$5 million (US$160,000) worth of collectable plastic bear figures.
On March 11, a man surnamed Chang (張) who runs the “Crazy Uncle Toy Warehouse (瘋狂大叔玩具倉庫)” found that roughly 60 of his Bearbrick designer toys had been stolen from his warehouse in Keelung’s Qidu, per CNA. Police said two men stole machinery from the warehouse in a separate burglary when they discovered the bears.
They are alleged to have returned to the warehouse on March 10 to steal the bears, some of which were then sold at a flea market in New Taipei’s Sanchong District. On Sunday (March 17), Police arrested five people in connection with the case in locations throughout Keelung, New Taipei, and Taoyuan.
Amphetamines were seized along with 18 of Chang’s bears when the arrests were made, police said. The 18 bears have been returned to Chang while the others remain unaccounted for.
Chang posted on Facebook thanking police for returning the bears and arresting the suspects, and said he had been promised that investigations would continue into the whereabouts of the remaining toys. While he hopes all will be returned, he says understands that some of the toys may not be recovered.
"But I still hope to find them. Every toy is my baby!," he wrote.
According to U.K. department store Selfridges, Bearbricks are a “highly sought-after and exclusive items in the adult collectable sphere” that are commonly made of vinyl and stand about seven centimeters tall. The majority of models stolen from the Keelung warehouse were 28 centimeters tall.
Chang's post on the Crazy Uncle Toy Warehouse Facebook page.
