Pokémon VGC player Chen-Wei Liu claimed that his tournament Player ID was used by someone else, only to receive an indefinite suspension notice afterward. The penalty cited rules against deception or fraudulent behavior but did not specify which particular actions officials determined he had committed.
Materials released by Johnny Chiou show that Liu discovered his RK9 account had been transferred to another email address without authorization, and another competitor used the player number 5283777 at the 2026 Pokémon World Championships. Liu stated that the number belongs to him and was used by him at the 2024 World Championships. The public match list from August 28 listed the number under Taiwanese player I-Shang Chang, and the public VGC rankings also recorded the corresponding matches. However, the spelling of the player's name in Chiou's post did not match the match list.
According to the related timeline, Liu discovered that his RK9 profile and tournament history had disappeared on September 4 and contacted the platform. RK9 reportedly confirmed on September 17 that someone had applied to change the email address using correct credentials before the World Championships, but Liu denied ever authorizing this. He subsequently requested an investigation by The Pokémon Company International, but received a suspension notice on October 16, citing issues related to his World Championships eligibility and attendance.
The penalty prohibits Liu from participating in Play! Pokémon events as either a player or a spectator, with the option to appeal after 90 days. Liu denies any wrongdoing and stated that as of November 10, he had not received a substantive response. Currently, publicly available information only confirms that the player's allegations and the official suspension notice coexist; neither identity theft nor wrongful punishment has been verified.