Someone bought a Pokémon card featuring the character Charizard with COVID-19 relief money and has been sentenced to three years in prison as a result.

Georgia-based man Vinath Oudomsine acquired the card for around $57,000 after he was given an $85,000 COVID-19 relief loan for allegedly owning a small business with 10 employees, prosecutors stated. The 31-year-old has agreed to give up the collectible as part of a plea agreement.

In October 2021, the Associated Press reported that he pleaded guilty to illegally obtaining the card. Prosecutors said that Oudomsine had put forward inaccurate information to the U.S. Small Business Administration regarding his business, including how many workers he had employed.

United States district court judge Dudley H. Bowen also demanded Oudomsine pay $10,000, as well as reimburse the $85,000 he received as part of the loan program.

"COVID-19 disaster relief loans are issued by the government to help businesses struggling to survive during a pandemic, not to use for trivial collectible items,” Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta Philip Wislar said. “This sentence highlights the FBI’s commitment to aggressively pursue anyone who would abuse taxpayer dollars and divert them from citizens who desperately need them.”

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