News

Pokémon Company International Faces Lawsuit Because Former Executive Allegedly Hid Cameras in Bathrooms

A woman under the anonymous name Jane Doe has sued The Pokémon Company International (TCPI), claiming that its former engineering director Ben Tsai has allegedly hidden cameras in various public bathrooms, including one in the company's U.S. office in Bellevue, WA. The class-action lawsuit alleges that 45-year-old Tsai violated Washington's antidiscrimination law by secretly recording women and children, and accuses him of recording with the purpose of distribution. It also alleges that TCPI was negligent in training Tsai and making efforts to control his actions or protect the plaintiff.

Tsai, who has not been with TCPI since January, was reportedly charged with first-degree voyeurism in January after allegedly hiding a video camera in a Starbucks bathroom in Kirkland, followed by more charges of dealing and possessing sexually explicit depictions of minors. The charges indicate that he had also recorded videos using hidden cameras in bathrooms in a Safeway store and his own home. In addition, the Kirkland Police Department had discovered that he had hundreds of videos with adult nudity and child sexual abuse material.

The lawsuit seeks to represent to all women and girls who have used the bathroom at the The Pokémon Company International's Bellevue office from 2017 through July 25, 2026.

Tsai's attorney Bradley Barshis has stated, "My client has entered and will enter pleas of not guilty to all charges."

TCPI manages the Pokémon franchise's brand management, licensing, marketing, the trading card game, the anime, home entertainment, and the official website outside of Asia. In February, the company entered into an agreement to acquire distributor and category manager Excell Brands, the largest United States distributor of Pokémon TCG (Trading Card Game). TCPI acquired card printing company Millennium Print Group in April 2022. The Pokémon Company International became the publisher and distributor of the TCG in 2003.

Sources: IGN (Tom Phillips), The Seattle Times (Mirandah Davis-Powell), TMZ