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My ex-boyfriend is holding my belongings hostage.What should I do?

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Laura888

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? CA
Hi I'm Laura, 22, from CA.
Okay. So I'm sorry for the really LONG tale from before. You're ALL right, it was TOO LONG. Anyways here I go:

My ex-boyfriend has had some of my belongings since last year July 2005, which is also when we broke up and I moved out of his parents house. I've been asking him to give it back since last year, he refuses, makes excuses and won't give it back.

Last Month (January 2006) I gave an ultimatum to give it back or I'll take him to court. He never gave it back. I decided to try the parents and the dad said he would get my things to me. A week later I called since I got no reply. The dad was screaming at me because my ex had stolen a LARGE amount of money from a company he worked for, and my ex told the dad that the money was spent on me. The dad told me that I had to pay his son $2,000 to get my things back. (Why $2,000? Well, when I purchased my car in 2004, my ex had given me $2,000 to help me for down-payment on my car. That money was given to me, with no agreement that I pay him back. )

I brought the cops over to his house last Sunday. The dad and him understood that since the money was given to me, I don't owe him anything. The cops told me that I should have my things back by Tuesday, and that I should call him for it, otherwise, I'd have to take him to court. I called and he called back the next day saying, that now, to get my things back, I have to take his name off my car which we signed together. The car is still owned by the bank. First, he wanted $2,000 and since that didn't work, he's coming up with another matter of taking his name off my car. I said if I were to go along with the plan, I wanted something in writing and notarized because I don't trust him. He became furious and said he won't make any written agreements or sign anything.

Today, he text-messaged my phone that he will go ahead with the written thing as long as I sign too. I said no. He has carried thing way too far, for way too long. I also told him that if he doesn't get my things back to me by the end of this week, I'm taking this to court. I don't want to sign anything, because I realize I don't have to. I shouldn't even have to go through this next phase or game anymore. It went from ransom to simply holding my things hostage until I do him a favor. I need help...

Where do you think court will take me with this? Is this a valid case? I'm not sure of my rights. Are there lawyers who'd like to help me take on this case in court? I'd really appreciate any replies.
 
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Laura888 said:
What is the name of your state? CA

My name is Laura and I'm 22 from CA. I have kind of a long story, hope it's not boring because I feel that I have to tell you SOME story for you to understand where I'm coming from. Feel free to judge this case objectively. Hope it's at least a little fun to read, it's kinda like a soap-opera. Well, I have recently ended a 2 1/2 year relationship because my ex boyfriend stole almost $20,000 from the company he worked for (he's was fired).That of course wasn't the only reason, but let's just say the many bad things that I over looked just became too much. We lived together for 1 1/2 year in an apt. The deal was that he would pay rent, and I would take on the stereotypical duties of a woman (doing dishes, washing clothes, cooking, and paying ALL other bills such as gas, eletricity.... etc. but the rent). I had bought many things for the apartment such as almost everything that had to do with the kitchen (knives, dishes, pots and pans, toaster... etc. ) I also bought artwork for the apartment and i have these really cherishable Christmas ornaments I bought. Let's just say, an estimate of all my belongings in which I paid for, total up to $2,000. We were doing fine for one year at the apartment, and then all of a sudden, he starts buying material things.. and has a hard time paying the rent. So, we decided to move into a cheaper place. Then he decided to buy another truck which was way more expensive but I couldn't stop him. We lived there only for the 6 mo lease and ended up moving into his parents home, which wasn't such a great idea, but let's just say... I did it for him. We moved in to his parents house in January 2005. I went on a trip to Vegas with my girlfriend, and when I get back, there's chaos. His parents were pissed that I was not at their home doing domestic duties when I'm still a full-time student, and on top of that, I was working 2 jobs. I was always tired and never had the time. (I also found out shortly after moving in, that he was around $16,000 in credit-card debt plus another $38,000 for the new truck purchase.) The dad told me to take responsibility of HIS money. He's 25 years old. But, I'll tell you.. I really tried. I even got him Quicken. I told him to bring me his paystubs... but out of pride, he wouldn't give it to me to budget his money. THe dad became disappointed at me. Blamed me for letting his son spend money on me, when actually, HE NEVER EVER bought me anything for material purposes. I always bought my own things and took care of my responsibilites. I became a scapegoat, and decided I should move out before things got worse. I moved out in June, and when I had left, he brought some of my belongings to me. BUT, There were also things in the dad's business storage which were not returned to me. ( those are the belongings that total to about $2000 as I mentioned above) I've asked for it since then. He always gave me excuses. Even till mid-January of this year.. I bought it.. and let it be put off ... believing his excuses. Then, I realized I was being too nice. I gave him an ultimatum. If he didn't give me my things back by the end of the week, I would have to take him to court. He became appalled.. said... "you have to give me back the $2,000 that I gave you for downpayment on your car" Then, I said, "you then have to give me back the money I paid for your cell phone bills when you were months late, the partial rent payments I helped you with" Then, we'd be back down to zero. Plus, that money he gave me was a gift to me. There was no agreement for me to pay him back, and even when I offered to repay him, he said no. Well, I brought the police over to his house this past Sunday. The dad was doing all the talking saying that he won't give me back the things without money, as if he's holding my things ransom. My ex couldn't defend himself and hid around the corner. I'm appalled that he just can't give me my belongings back. I think I'm entitled to get back what I worked hard for, and paid for out of my own pocket. I don't owe him anything because everything we ever gave each other was a gift or just a giving act with no strings attached. Could I take him to court for this? What rights do I have to fight this? and what laws don't help me? We were never married, but does the communal property thing apply to me? I mean, I could just get over this and just take my losses, but I feel that this is exactly what they want. And, I just can't let that happen, because they will think they got away with it, and continue to take advantage of people in this nasty way. I'm not wanting to change them, but I do feel strongly that I should've been given back my things long long ago. it's February 15. It's been over 6 months, and I'm sick of this. I want to take him to court. He should actually be in jail for laundering money. Can I use this in court to benefit me? What kind of paperwork will I need to prove my case? Are words not going to be good enough for the judge? I'm just sad, very disappointed, and just.... feel like... I'm stuck and I can't do anything about all this. Can justice be served in this sort of thing? He lied and told his dad that he stole $20,000 from his company because he spent the money on me. The dad believes him of course. Did I mention, He also had the nerves to ask me if I could get a large student loan to help him with paying the company back? I could never do that. I don't want to have anything to do with him. I wish he had never existed and I just want to get my things back. -_- I also wish I knew the law better.
Laura:

I did not get past the third line. Mix in a paragraph or two, provide a brief summary of the facts, and ask your questions succinctly.
 

stephenk

Senior Member
it will take me 22 years to read that post.

forget the emotional soap opera and just post what is pertinent to the legal question you wish to have answered.
 

Laura888

Junior Member
Sorry.. Thanks for the attempt. Yes, it was very long. It has been shortened.

Thanks for bringing that up... cuz... I guess I was more involved with the details yesterday. Hopefully, this one's more to the point and easy to read.
 

Laura888

Junior Member
stephenk said:
it will take me 22 years to read that post.

forget the emotional soap opera and just post what is pertinent to the legal question you wish to have answered.
Yes, Thank you. It's much shorter today. :eek:
 

Laura888

Junior Member
john123456 said:
Laura:

I did not get past the third line. Mix in a paragraph or two, provide a brief summary of the facts, and ask your questions succinctly.
Thank you. I've shortened it at my best attempt. Hopefully it's brief enough. ;)
 

stephenk

Senior Member
Take him to court already, unless you enjoy the drama of still being in his life. Unless you have a kid with this guy, why are you still in contact with him?

How much is the stuff worth that he is holding onto?
 

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