Bought a motorcycle 2 years ago, police came to door, said it was stolen. Help!

[rjpflug]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Wisconsin

Bought a motorcycle 2 years ago received carfax, a title, got proof of insurance. all of that for the vehicle.

The police showed up saying the bike belonged to a guy who was in jail and his family sold the bike. apparently he didn't give them permission to sell it and now he wants it back saying it was stolen.

What can I do about this?

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Work with the owner, the family and the police to arrange for them to reimburse you so charges are not pressed against them for theft and fraud.

 

[rjpflug]

Will there be charges pressed against me for modifying the bike, or will I have to pay the owner back for the changes I've made to the bike? Even though I had not known it was stolen?

 

[CdwJava]

You shouldn't be charged for any crime provided they cannot show you knew the motorcycle was stolen. You may well have a claim for damages against the seller(s), but it may be difficult to collect from them.

I'm curious why it took them two years to figure out it was stolen.

 

[rjpflug]

You shouldn't be charged for any crime provided they cannot show you knew the motorcycle was stolen. You may well have a claim for damages against the seller(s), but it may be difficult to collect from them.

I'm curious why it took them two years to figure out it was stolen.

Well the story went the owner was in prison, his family sold the bike, the guy got out of prison, didn't know that his bike had be sold, got mad, reported it as stolen. However when I was talking to the police they said it was reported "Almost a year ago" and that they just traced the trail back to me.

It makes me curious a bit as well. Maybe I should be cautious and contact the police to make sure these police were real.

 

[CdwJava]

What makes you think the people that came to talk with you were not cops?

Did they provide you any paperwork? Business cards? Contact info?

Quite frankly, if the vehicle had been entered into SVS as stolen, they could have probably simply impounded it right then and there (provided the bike was present).

 

[BL]

If in fact it was stolden AND if the owner knew his family sold it and then reported it stolden, that's a filing of a false report.

If the family took it from the owner's prior residence without the owner's knowlege and sold it ,then charges should be filed against the family member who sold it.

At any rate , IF in fact it was stolden- sold without permission then it should be retured ( and I agree it should have been impounded by the PD ) , you file a claim for monetary damages you incured against the seller.

You need to talk to the PD investigator about the details.

 

[rjpflug]

What makes you think the people that came to talk with you were not cops?

Did they provide you any paperwork? Business cards? Contact info?

Quite frankly, if the vehicle had been entered into SVS as stolen, they could have probably simply impounded it right then and there (provided the bike was present).

They didn't provide me with any paperwork, or impound the vehicle which is quite frankly what makes me curious about possibly this being someone trying to scam my bike off of me.

If in fact it was stolen AND if the owner knew his family sold it and then reported it stolen, that's a filing of a false report.

If the family took it from the owner's prior residence without the owner's knowledge and sold it ,then charges should be filed against the family member who sold it.

At any rate , IF in fact it was stolen- sold without permission then it should be returned ( and I agree it should have been impounded by the PD ) , you file a claim for monetary damages you incurred against the seller.

You need to talk to the PD investigator about the details.

Right now I'm mainly worried because I sold the parts of the bike I replaced and modified. I sold stolen property, and I have no way of getting it back. Is that something that could be used against me even though I'm a "good faith" buyer?

 

[latigo]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Wisconsin

Bought a motorcycle 2 years ago received carfax, a title, got proof of insurance. all of that for the vehicle.

The police showed up saying the bike belonged to a guy who was in jail and his family sold the bike. apparently he didn't give them permission to sell it and now he wants it back saying it was stolen. What can I do about this?

You say that you purchased the bike. Using initials give the name of the titled owner and the name of the person who purportedly sold it to you.

How much did you pay the purported seller? What was the form of the payment, cash, personal check, money order? To whom did you deliver the form of payment? What was its approximate value at the time? What was its date of manufacture, make and model.

If you paid by personal check or money order, what was the name of the payee on the check or money order? Was it the name of the titled owner or the individual purportedly representing the authority to sell it on the owner's behalf? And if not the name of the actual owner, explain why not.

Did you obtain and retain a bill of sale and/or a receipt for the purchase? Whose name appears as the seller on any such documents?
____________

Explain in detail the process by which you "received title".

What was the name on the title at the time of your purchase? What name appeared on the title as transferor? In other words, give the name of the person that endorsed the title as seller. Was it different from the titled owner?

At the time were you aware that the person that purportedly sold it to you was not the titled owner? If so, what motivated you to pay for it knowing that the titled was not endorsed by the registered owner?

If the endorsement did not match the name of the titled owner, explain why you did not insist that it be endorsed by the titled owner.
___________

Whether you believe so or not, it behooved you to verify either, (1) that the registered titled owner in fact endorsed the title or, (2) that you were presented with some documentary evidenced signed by the registered title owner authorizing a third person to the transfer of title in his stead.
___________

In sum, the only way you can legally asserted ownership in the bike is if the title was endorsed by the registered owner, or the person that did endorse the title did so with direct and verifiable permission from the actual owner.

Your assumption that you are a "good faith buyer" may or not stand the test of criminal culpability. The cops are telling you that it is stolen merchandise and your response is that so-and-so sold it to me. Mmm? Where have we heard that before? "Bait Car" perhaps?

 

[Stressed About]

I'd be curious to find out if there is any statute of limitations timeframe to report it stolen.

 

[Zigner]

I'd be curious to find out if there is any statute of limitations timeframe to report it stolen.

Do you know what a statute of limitations is? It does not appear that you do, because you're using the phrase incorrectly here.

 

[CdwJava]

Well, the SoL Might be important *IF* it can be shown that the owner of the motorcycle had known it was sold or transferred sufficiently long ago that the time would have tolled.

Consider the scenario ... Owner goes to prison but needs some money. He asks family to sell his bike for him. They sell his bike but never give him the money. He gets out of prison, demands his money from the sale, and they refuse. He then goes to the police saying they sold it behind his back thus embezzling the motorcycle or stealing it outright.

While it is unlikely that this occurred, it IS possible, and I have seen similar scenarios play out. However, it is not a scenario the OP will really have any chance to investigate as that will have to be up to the police. All he can do is turn over the bike if provided the proper information or court order.