Shoppers camped outside a Charleston Target for a new card drop noticed a little girl asleep, and no parent anywhere in sight
The line outside a Target in Charleston, South Carolina, formed long before sunrise. It was filled with collectors determined to get their hands on a new Pokémon trading card set. Police say a 6-year-old girl was somewhere in that crowd, curled up asleep on a pillow and holding her father’s place while he was nowhere to be found.
A Late-Night Wait Turns Into a Police Call
John-Michael Dooley, 35, of Johns Island, was arrested Friday, according to the Charleston Police Department. Officers had been sent to the store in the city’s West Ashley neighborhood around 2:30 a.m. after a report of an unattended child.
Police said a large group of shoppers had camped out overnight ahead of the card release. Witnesses told officers that sometime after 1 a.m., Dooley settled his daughter in with a pillow and blanket, then walked away while she slept. About an hour went by with no sign of him. People waiting nearby grew alarmed and called police.
What Police Say the Father Admitted
When Dooley came back to the store, witnesses pointed him out to officers and he was taken into custody. Police said he told detectives that he had gone home and left the girl alone so he would not lose his spot in line, or his chance to buy the cards.
The child was not injured. Authorities placed her in emergency protective custody with the South Carolina Department of Social Services.
Dooley was charged with unlawful conduct toward a child, a felony under state law that carries up to 10 years in prison. He has since been released, according to a Charleston Police Department spokesperson who spoke to ABC News and cited records on the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office website.
A Target representative, speaking to ABC News on background, said the store was closed when the incident happened. The representative said the retailer would assist law enforcement with the investigation.
Inside the Pokémon Card Craze
The case is an extreme example of a hobby that has grown well beyond the playground. Since the collectibles boom of the early 2020s, new Pokémon sets have routinely sold out within hours, and scarce cards can bring steep prices on the resale market. Overnight lines outside big-box stores used to be rare. Now they are common on release days, often packed with adults hoping to resell what they buy for a profit.
The frenzy has boiled over before. In 2021, Target temporarily stopped selling trading cards in its stores after a dispute outside a Wisconsin location turned dangerous. The company said the move was meant to protect shoppers and staff.
A Kids’ Game, an Adult Rush
There is a bitter irony at the center of the Charleston case. Pokémon was made for children, with colorful creatures designed to spark imagination and friendship. In this instance, police allege, the hunt for the cards came before the safety of a young child.
For many families, the hobby is still a real bonding ritual. Parents and kids trade duplicates at the kitchen table or hunt for packs together on weekends. The story out of West Ashley is a reminder that no limited release, however hyped, is worth more than a child’s well-being. It also reflects well on the strangers in line who noticed something was wrong and refused to look away.
What Comes Next
The case now moves through the South Carolina court system, while the state’s social services agency handles questions about the girl’s care. Police have not released further details about where she is now living, and it is unclear when Dooley is due back in court.
For the collectors who were there that morning, the new cards were supposed to be the story. What they will likely remember instead is the little girl sleeping alone outside the store, and the choice that left her there.
Source: yahoo!news
