How accused Pokemon card scammer nearly cheated one Carousell user: He had Verified Badge, good reviews
When Kevin first saw the news of a Pokémon card seller accused of cheating buyers under the Carousell handle "mrkwek", he stared blankly at the screen.
"That's the guy I chased for months," he recalled.
He immediately forwarded the article to his friends, who had placed a collective preorder with the same seller.
"We were shocked, but also relieved that he was caught," Kevin told Stomp. "I could've been part of the $80,000."
On Dec 3, "mrkwek", whose real name is Eugene Kwek Yi Jun, was charged with cheating one victim who paid $1,800 after being deceived into believing Kwek had Pokemon trading cards for sale between Oct 23 and Dec 1.
Kwek, 29, is believed to be involved in over 100 cases with total losses amounting to around $80,000.
Cheating carries a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment and a fine.
Recounting his close call, Kevin said he placed a collective preorder of Pokémon cards with Kwek in December 2024, totaling $2,400.
The 25-year-old civil servant was asked to pay a 20 per cent deposit, amounting to $480, via PayNow, which he promptly did.
Kevin noted that he didn't think twice about making the payment, as Kwek's account — now suspended — had over a thousand positive reviews and carried a Verified Badge.
Before placing the preorder, he said that his communications with Kwek were "very prompt", sometimes receiving replies within the minute.
The preorder date and product release date were a few months apart, and Kevin said he had mostly forgotten about it — until Kwek contacted him again to ask if he wanted to preorder the next product release.
That was when Kevin asked for an update on his initial preorder.
"That's when the vague information and lack of communication started," he recalled.
According to Kevin, Kwek repeatedly gave shifting timelines such as "by end of next week", "by this week", and "confirm with you again" — but would often "ghost" him until Kevin chased him for follow-ups.
"For about two months, from February to April, I chased and pestered him repeatedly for updates. Whenever he gave an arbitrary deadline, I would stay on his trail," he said.
He eventually asked for a refund, adding that by then, Kwek no longer initiated any conversations.
"I got the feeling that he was trying to delay as much as possible and see if I would forget about the entire thing, along with my deposit, after a long enough time period," he said.
After hounding Kwek "persistently" for two months, Kevin finally received his refund.
He also shared that he did not consider filing a police report at the time, as the communication channel was still technically open — even if it was mostly one-sided — and because Kwek had a supposedly good track record.
'Serves him right'
Since successfully fighting for his $480 refund, Kevin had put the matter behind him.
Seven months later, news of Kwek's alleged crimes surfaced — and this time, Kevin said he felt relieved.
"Serves him right," he said.
Although Kevin managed to recover his refund, he acknowledged that many others may not have been as fortunate.
"I still take it as a lesson learned in doing my due diligence," he admitted.
"It didn't personally affect my confidence in buying cards online however, I know that there's still a large community who genuinely love the hobby and want to involve others as fairly as possible," said Kevin.
