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Georgia Man Gets 3 Years Prison for Using COVID Funds to Buy a Pokémon Card

He claimed he needed federal stimulus assistance to prop up an “entertainment services” enterprise with 10 employees. Instead, he used most of the funds to buy a Charizard.

A Georgia man has been sentenced to 36 months in prison and charged an $85,000 restitution fee for using COVID-19 relief funds to buy a Pokémon card. Vinath Oudomsine, 31, of Dublin, Georgia, claimed he needed federal stimulus assistance to prop up an “entertainment services” enterprise with 10 employees. After reviewing his application, the Small Business Administration granted Oudomsine $85,000 on August 4, 2020. Prosecutors said he then used $57,789 of it to buy a rare “Charizard” Pokémon card. The hustling collector eventually admitted to the deception and in addition to serving prison time, he has been ordered to hand over the Charizard. “Like moths to the flame, fraudsters like Oudomsine took advantage of these programs to line their own pockets—and with our law enforcement partners, we are holding him and others accountable for their greed,” David H. Estes, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, said.