Content area
Full Text
TWO more cases of Pokemon-linked crime which emerged yesterday led to calls for the makers of the craze among children to review their sales tactics. At the weekend, two children in Hull, one as young as eight, were robbed at knifepoint of Pokemon cards by two 11-year- olds.
A boy, 14, and his friend, 13, were abused by a gang of six boys in Ramsgate, Kent, when the older boy refused to hand over his cards.
The incidents are the latest in a number of offences spurred by children's apparently insatiable demand for anything associated with Pokemon toys. More worryingly, the first Pokemon-related killing was reported in Philadelphia last month.
David Hart, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, yesterday accused the makers of Pokemon cards of using "irresponsible" sales tactics to whip up the craze. He suggested that the sale of rare cards was being restricted to fuel the youngsters' "obsession".
Cards showing the fantasy monsters have been fetching up to GBP 25 each on the playground...
