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Did Shyne Buy A Tampered Box of 2009-2010 Exquisite + How You Can Protect Yourself Against Tampered Boxes

sealed box card tampering

Bolillo Lajan San, also known as Shyne, is one of the top influencers in the hobby (according to ESPN his real name is Matt Allen).

Despite being among the highest profile collectors, Shyne appears to have been fooled on a transaction. Or at least he was fooled into thinking he was fooled. Yes, this story gets confusing.

It all started when Shybe was flexing on Instagram that he has a private jet to rip cards; Shyne opened a case of 2009-2010 Exquisite that he bought at the National for $80,000.

It was during the rip that things went south for Shyne. Learn the whole story, and we will answer the question: did Shyne buy a tampered box of 2009-2010 Exquisite?

Who Is Shyne?

Let’s start with a brief introduction to the individual at the center of all this drama. According to an ESPN story, he made his money in private equity and put much of it into cards.

It is Matt Allen, but that’s not something you’ll see on his manicured social media. According to ESPN: “Allen invested money he made from private equity into cards. (“That’s something I don’t want to get into,” Allen says when asked about his background. “A lot of people want to know the story.”)

“I parlayed my profits into my passion,” he says now, wielding a sports card collection worth more than $100 million, by his estimate.

The hobby first became aware of Shyne through a $474,000 purchase of a 2020 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs Superfractor of Yankees prospect Jasson Dominguez. He was still in single-A ball then, so the price seemed ridiculous. To be honest, it still does.  

What happened when Shyne bought a box of 2009-2010 Exquisite

As you can see on the video, he was excited to get his hands on some of the “sick Jordans” and the logomans in that release. There are indeed some fantastic Jordan autos and patch cards in this release.

That is also Steph Curry’s rookie year (where does the time go), so you could land any number of his rookie cards there. James Harden rookies can also be found there. Any basketball card fan would LOVE to get the chance to rip a case of this.

He opened two boxes and was not very happy with the cards he got. There was nothing big there and many redemptions (of course, long expired). But when he got to the third box, Bolillo was disgusted to discover that there were cards from previous years.

He immediately declared that the box had been tampered with and threw it away disgustingly. Shyne said, “I’m noticing right now that there is an 04-05 Exquisite here. Look, crazy shit happens. I just paid $80,000 for this case. And we are finding 04-05 Exquisites here.” That was when he decided not to open the last box.

YouTube video

Shyne then posted another video showing the box that he had not opened. In it, he claimed that the re-packing job had been very poorly done. It did indeed look like the plastic was not properly shrink-wrapped. You can see for yourself.

Shyne then began the process of getting his money back from the seller. The seller was willing to play ball and give the money back, perhaps because it was an honest party or because Shyne was a big influencer who could deeply embarrass them.

Was the 2009-2010 Exquisite box tampered with?

However, things were not quite that simple. The checklist for 2009-2010 Exquisite does indeed include cards from previous years. There is no reason to believe that the cards were tampered with.

The Twitter account @Auburn35 (an excellent account that deserves way more followers than it currently has, Tweeted:

“Doubt this was resealed; it looks like a standard 09-10 break. Upper Deck mixed in cards from the prior year as “buybacks.”

Another account, @therealdfg, posted:

$80K & he didn’t bother to look at the checklist to see that 09/10 EXQUISITE has 04, 06, & 08 base & parallel cards inserted randomly. I’m not saying it wasn’t tampered with, but you should probably know what potentially you’re buying, right? Crazy stuff.

As one Instagram user commented on the video, somewhat sardonically: “Beckett checklist has 04/05, 06/07, and 08/09 cards listed. You may want to look into what you’re dropping money on if you’re going to claim to be part of “The Hobby” yet not know the basics.”

Indeed, that year, Upper Deck featured a heavy buyback program and included many cards from previous years. Many are on the checklist, but veteran hobby folk remember many cards were not. Our friend Shyne did not do his homework before investing in the product.

Another user commented, “You think someone is smart enough to reseal like that and dumb enough to put the wrong year card in?” Which is a good point. If that had been a box tampered with and resealed, it certainly looks like they did a great job. It would be easy to put in cards with lower value from that year and sell all the big cards, like the Jordans.

One Twitter user said that he had talked to Upper Deck employees about this: “This is common practice for UD—they would put cards returned late from players and also unclaimed redemptions into future high-end products … in 2011/12 The Cup, there would be older cards in there all the time. They sometimes even put them on the checklist.”

We looked into the checklist and have verified that cards from all the years that Shyne mentioned in the video can be found in the 2009-2010 Upper Deck Basketball Exquisite product. That doesn’t mean the box wasn’t tampered with. However, the presence of those cards does not provide evidence that something is wrong with the case.

What happened with the 2009-2010 Exquisite case?

The evidence is mixed, and we are not convinced that the case Shyne bought at the National was tampered with. However, the person who sold it to him decided to bite the bullet, and he offered Shyne a complete refund. According to a message he posted on Instagram:

“I was reimbursed the 80K on the Exquisite case with zero issues. The seller has tracked it back to the auction house from which it was purchased. From there, the co-signer of the item will be known/exposed, hopefully leading it back to the original person who resealed it. All this is getting exhausting. Everyone needs to be careful.”

Since then, there has been radio silence about this issue. We still don’t know if that box was tampered with or if including older cards misled Shyne.

YouTube video

How to know if a Sports Card Box has been tampered with

We cannot be sure if that box was tampered with. However, there is no question that many boxes are opened and resealed. The more valuable the box, the more likely this is to happen.

In the case highlighted above, Shyne bought an entire case. That is usually an excellent way to avoid problems since cases are typically shrink-wrapped, which makes it harder for them to be tampered with.

In addition, when you buy hobby boxes, even if they are shrink-wrapped, you could receive them from a case where the case hits are already accounted for.

The worst hits are usually individual packs, which are relatively easy to feel for the bigger hits. So when you can, get a shrink-wrapped case. But of course, that is no guarantee of anything. We have tips to keep you protected.

Tips on how to protect yourself from a tampered case

Here are some things to look for when buying a case:

Make sure it is shrink-wrapped. That guarantees nothing but makes tampering a lot more complicated. Also, check if the shrink wrap seems professional. Today, most card companies do this well; if it is loose or poorly done, that is not a good sign. However, Note that many 1990s and early 2000s products are pretty shoddy.

One Blowout Forums user noted, “One tip I’ve had from a knowledgeable member was to research how shrink wrap is applied during a particular series or run, which has been helpful. I’ve also noticed some of those high-priced 90s boxes. I’m talking specifically about 96-97 Bowmans Best, 97-98 Metal, Skybox Premium, and Z-Force. The shrink wrap is shabby, almost like a monkey was let loose with the heat gun.”

YouTube video

It used to be a lot harder to watch out for this stuff. However, now it is far more accessible. You can find boxes of most stuff online, and you can ask sellers for close-up pictures of the shrink wrap and seal. That can help you compare boxes and look for any irregularities. Boxes and cases are enough of an investment to warrant this level of care, especially if they are very expensive, like this 2009-2010 Exquisite.

Sports card boxes should be sealed, not just shrink-wrapped. There will often be a sticker sealing it. There should be no gaps in the box at all because those can be used to feel packs, exchange packs, and do other shady things.

Final word: Did Shyne buy a tampered box of 2009-2010 Exquisite?

We still don’t know if the box Shyne bought had been tampered with. Either way, the issue is serious. As early as 1993, there were complaints about large-volume resealing of shrink-wrapped products.  

The solution is to do your homework, especially when a vast purchase is at stake. Shyne did not look at the checklist, which may have led him to believe the box was tampered with falsely.

Meanwhile, other people don’t do research and make the opposite mistakes. They buy expensive boxes that have been resealed without knowing. So, make sure to see the checklist of your product, what cards are guaranteed in each box, and what the shrink wrap and seal should look like.

You can never be 100% sure, but that will go a long way towards protecting you.

Shaiel Ben-Ephraim

Shaiel Ben-Ephraim

Shaiel Ben-Ephraim is the emeritus editor of Cardlines. He continues to write for several hobby outlets, including this one and Cardbase. He collects primarily vintage baseball and soccer and has a weird obsession with 1971 Topps.

In his spare time, Shaiel is sobbing into his bourbon when the Mets lose and playing Dungeons and Dragons. In a past life, Dr. Ben-Ephraim was a political science professor, journalist, and diplomat. But cards are more fun.
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