Kotaku EastEast is your piece of Asian internet culture, offering you the latest hotspots from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 04:00 to 08:00.
People in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, have arrested a 23-year-old man for violating the country’s unfair competition law. According to Asahi News, the suspect is accused of selling a muddy Sobble.
Last April, the suspect, an unemployed Nagoya resident, allegedly hacked the character via a computer and sold it to a Kyoto man for 4400 yen ($ 42). The prefecture police pointed out at a press conference today on the computer used to change the data.
The suspect, Asahi News adds, is said to have confessed.
Under Japanese law, improper activities like these violate the unfair competition prevention law.
It is believed that the man earned 1150 000 yen ($ 10 900) a year until last year for the sale of muddy Pokémon Sword and Shield characters.