Man Accused of Stealing 63,000 'Bluey' Commemorative Coins Worth Around $400,000

Mar. 15, 2025

A 47-year-old man is due to appear in court after being accused of stealing nearly $400,000 worth of limited-edition coins from the popular animated seriesBluey.

The man was arrested on Wednesday, Aug. 7, and is accused of taking 63,000 unreleased limited edition $1Blueycoins from the back of a truck at a warehouse in Fairfield City, Australia on June 23, the local police said in arelease.

The suspect was arrested at his home in Syndey and is believed to have been an employee at the warehouse at the time of the theft, according to police.

‘Bluey’ limited edition coins.HANDOUT/NEW SOUTH WALES POLICE/AFP via Getty Images

HANDOUT/NEW SOUTH WALES POLICE/AFP via Getty Images

“On Monday, July 12, police received a report that a large amount of currency had been stolen from a warehouse in Wetherill Park,” per the release. “… Strike Force detectives — with assistance from Raptor Squad — executed a search warrant at a home in Westmead, about 7:00 a.m. today (Aug. 7), where they arrested a 47-year-old man.”

The man was identified as Stephen John Nielson, perSky NewsandABC News Australia.

Police allege he sold the coins online “hours after he stole them” for “ten times the value.”

A man has been accused of stealing nearly $400,00 worth of ‘Bluey’ coins in Sydney.George Chan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

George Chan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The suspect is charged with “three counts of break & enter” with the “intent to commit a serious indictable offense,” according to the police release. The crime has amaximum penalty of 10 years.

Blueydebuted in Australia in 2018 and first aired in the U.S. in 2019. The widely popular animated series is also one of themost-streamed shows for Disneyacross all audiences in 2024.

Detective Superintendent Joseph Doueihi told reporters at a news conference, perNBC News: “The theft of these coins have deprived a lot of young children and members of the community from having access to these coins, so we’re doing our absolute best to try to recover these coins and put them back into circulation.”

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

“Our investigation at that stage identified that person that was selling those coins was a legitimate coin collector and had innocently come into possession of those items,” Doueihi said, per the outlet. “We don’t know what he sold them for, but we know that as soon as they were stolen, they were offloaded almost immediately.”

source: people.com