The global component crisis has reached unprecedent levels, to the point where some are really feeling the desperation. It's not just RAM or SSDs, but graphics cards are also getting expensive across the world. For some, though, that means GPUs can now be sold for profit. Turning desperation into opportunity, a thief in South Korea just stole three GPUs worth around $11,000 currently.
The CCTV footage depicts the thief running out of the store with his entire torso enveloped by just three boxes. Had he stolen the same volume of RAM instead, he probably would've been able to hire a lawyer to defend this robbery. The shop owner remarks in the video below that he still might've stolen some memory or SSDs — his team is running an inventory check to confirm damages.
The cards taken were an ROG Astral RTX 5090, Aorus Master RTX 5090, and a Colorful iGame RTX 5080 Vulcan. These were valued at 17 million Korean won, or around $11,778, according to the vendor. If RAM and storage were also shoplifted, the total loss could exceed 20 million Korean won, which is about $13,845.
Now, the going rate for these three combined (based on current listings) is between $10,000 to $11,000 in the region, so the shop owner's estimates track. Moreover, the vendor even showed empathy toward this act. "I think this happened because everyone is going through hard times," said the owner, offering to extend leniency if the goods were simply returned.
Police are actively looking for the preparator and online sentiment in South Korea points toward how easy it would be to catch him since he wasn't careful enough. To be clear, the robber was wearing a mask and gloves, but since the entire act was still recorded — and the fact that serial numbers for GPUs can be tracked — it shouldn't be long before a suspect is taken into custody.
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