The owner of the store felt he had "undeniable proof" of the repeated thefts, captured on video.
Police said they had been informed and the initial inquiries had been completed.
The former employee allegedly opened packs of trading cards during his shifts, without paying for them, in search of valuable cards — tossing the rest in the bin, the owner claimed.
The man’s actions had left him feeling "absolutely betrayed".
"He was a good friend."
The man is understood to be the son of two prominent New Zealanders.
His father declined to comment when asked by the Otago Daily Times about the allegations yesterday.
The owner said video footage — some of which was provided to the ODT — showed the man had stolen from sealed products worth a total retail value of about $40,000 over at least six months.
The packs of cards were primarily Pokemon trading cards.
Some Pokemon cards have been known to fetch an incredibly high return on investment.
One of the most expensive in the world, a 1998 "Illustrator Pikachu", sold for $US5.275 million ($NZ9.13m) in 2022.
The store owner alleged the man would remove the packs from the shelf during his shift and open them to check if there was "a big hit, or anything that’s worth money" inside.
"If he did not get anything big out of it, he would literally just toss it in the trash."
It was only once he showed a tradie the view from one of the store’s security cameras that he discovered what was happening.
"I watched him open some booster packs, which are about $10 each.
"I could clearly see on the camera that he didn’t pay for them — even the tradie picked up on it."
He then uncovered more camera footage, going back six months, which he alleged showed the man opening card packs "every single shift".
The footage showed the man even opening the packs in the vicinity of customers.
"It was like opening a can of worms.
"We just went through it, month after month."
He would then either pocket the valuable cards or put them in his bag.
Everyone just assumed he was paying for the cards.
"He was routinely pulling big stuff, which did make people suspicious ... there was no way he was that lucky."
Some of the cards were identifiable on camera, and were later seen for sale on Facebook and Trade Me through known accounts of the former employee.
Police had "really been dragging the chain" and he believed this was because of the identities of the man’s parents.
"They know who his parents are.
"They know the second they put him through the courts, there’s a greater story."
A police spokesman said they had received a report on March 23 of an alleged theft as a servant at a business.
He said police had completed the initial inquiries into the allegations, which were believed to have taken place over a number of years.
"The file is currently waiting for re-assignment to a detective."
Police were speaking to a person in relation to the investigation and were not seeking anyone else on the matter.
