A Manhattan federal jury on Wednesday found a Washington state man guilty of faking mint grades to inflate the value of high-dollar trading cards, including a prized Michael Jordan rookie card, in what prosecutors described as a meticulously executed scheme targeting collectors. The case, dubbed the Jordan Card Fake Mint Grades suit, exposed the high-stakes world of graded collectibles to federal scrutiny.

Jury Reaches Verdict After Two Days

After roughly four hours of deliberation across two days, the jury returned a verdict against Anthony Curcio, capping a trial before U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams that began on Jan. 13.

Curcio, of Redmond, Washington, lowered his gaze and wiped tears as the verdict was read. He was convicted of wire fraud and conspiracy, with sentencing scheduled for May 13.

Curcio’s co-defendant, Iosif “Joe” Bondarchuk, previously pled guilty in connection with the alleged $2 million scam, which reportedly began around 2022, and testified against Curcio during the trial.

Faking “Mint” Grades to Inflate Value

During closing arguments, federal prosecutor David Felton walked jurors through a "mountain" of evidence, including Curcio’s own text messages, to show how he allegedly faked mint grades on cards to deceive buyers.

A PSA mint grade — issued by Professional Sports Authenticator, a leading card-grading company — can boost a card’s value by tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, trial evidence showed.

Curcio is accused of falsifying the 1986 Michael Jordan rookie card from Fleer, a highly coveted collectible, along with a first-year Pokémon Charizard card and roughly 40 additional trading cards.

Defense Argues Anger, Not Fraud

Curcio’s attorney, Martin Bell, countered that prosecutors failed to prove intent to defraud collectors. Instead, the defense claimed Curcio’s actions were driven by frustration with PSA, which he said had blacklisted him, and a desire to continue participating in the card-trading world independently.

“While not well-advised, these actions were motivated by anger, not criminal intent,” Bell said. He added that the case highlights gatekeeping issues in the collectibles industry.

Curcio previously served time for a 2008 armored car robbery, a fact prosecutors cited during trial.

Verdict and Next Steps

After the verdict, Bell called the decision a “disappointing day” for Curcio and his family and confirmed that an appeal is planned.

“We respect the jury’s verdict, although we disagree with it,” Bell said. “We believe the investigation and resulting case were flawed and should never have been brought.”

PSA declined to comment on the trial.

Legal Teams

Curcio is represented by Martin Bell, Meredith Karp, Patrick Barry, Nicolas Lussier, Wendy Wu, and Gineen Abuali of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.

The government is represented by Cecilia Vogel, David Felton, and Kingdar Prussien of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

The Jordan Card Fake Mint Grades suit underscores the legal and financial risks in the booming collectibles market, where a “mint” label can turn a piece of cardboard into a fortune — or a federal case.