Topic: Thieves/ do you cut em' slack? wrong forum, please move to open forum

[DH]

Curious as to how to handle one. A few months ago, in the autumn if I recall,
someone stole my 18 speed bicycle off of my carport. I looked around the neighborhood for a few days trying to find it. Never did. So in a last act of desperation,
i filed a police report. Thinking I'd never see it again, I forgot about it, and took the loss. Until......this morning. Went out with the wife on errands across town and to get something to eat. Hardee's is wayy to crowded, so we start walking towards Taco Belle, and I see it. MY BICYCLE, chainlocked to a light pole. And I'm POSITIVE it's mine. So we summoned the police and waited on the lot. Suspicious guy comes out of Taco Belle in his uniform, as I'm trying to release the front wheel, and asks if he can help me. I ask if its his bike, he says yes. I tell him he needs to talk to the cop i'm pointing to that is approaching us, because thats my bike and its stolen. The dude gets pissed and starts rationalizing why it belongs to him. Long story, but I tell cop its mine and can prove it with paperwork. Go home, get paperwork (from 1994) with serial #, and show cop. Taco Belle guy is 28, and has no car, rides "his" bike to and from work, and has owned bike for months. Has the attitude of "finders keepers", since that was his story. Supposedly found bike in a ditch, abandoned
for a week, so he takes it as his. The part of town where he claims he found it
is an "unwholesome" part of town. No way to prove his story, cop said he didn't think the guy stole it, but he could arrest him for possession of stolen property.
After a cool down, I told the cop no, but to let the guy know how nice I'm being
to him by giving him benefit of doubt. I've needed that bike as part of my exercise
/treatment for a medical condition I have, so its no small matter. Haven't had cash for a new one, so glad its back. The thought to make his life miserable w/arrest was appealing. He may have a "history" as well. Ok, I'm over it. What would you all have done? There's no wrong answers, I'm just wonderin if I did right...

[Retro Rocket]

Yeah right, "found it on the side of the road", its is possible, but considering this guy didn't have a car i would suspect he "borrowed" it for his own use, if he lived close to you i would have had him charged,  possession of stolen goods,  even if he didn't steal it he probably paid someone to do it for him....

[flatlander]

i have zero tolerance for people who don't respect other people's property but think you did the right thing here. if he really found it in a ditch, nobody could blame him for thinking it was abandoned. of course he could have called the cops to see if it was reported stolen but not sure you can realistically expect that of a guy who looks for abandoned stuff in ditches... (i wouldn't, anyway)
if he actually stole it and just invented the story he got away too easy but it's impossible to prove that he stole it.

amsterdam is notorious for getting bikes stolen. shortly after we moved here my girlfriend's bike got stolen from in front of our house where it was locked to a bicycle rack. i spotted it locked to another rack, outside another house in the same street! like you, i called the cops then went to knock on the door of the house where the bike was parked, suspecting that someone living there had just "transferred" it. indeed, the guy answered it was "his" bike when i asked him. apparently he'd seen it locked up in front of our house and assumed it was not being used as it was always in the same spot so he cut it loose and took it. what a bollox story!
i demanded it back in no uncertain terms. he unlocked it and gave it back. in the meantime also the cops had arrived so he had no choice really. i even explained he had destroyed our lock so i wanted it replaced. he offered the one he had used which i refused as it was lower quality and he probably had a few spare keys to it anyway so not safe (and, let's be honest because i wanted to hurt him a bit more). so i made him pay the value of a really good lock as well. i think at that point he would have paid anything just to get rid of us 

[Bailgang]

You did what I probably would've done. The only thing I might have added is look the chump straight in the eyes and say "I hope you have your walking shoes on, I hear it's good exercise". 

[MoMo]

I would have done the same thing as long as I got the feeling the guy was telling the truth.  I had two very expensive bikes stolen many moons ago, never saw them again, thieves cut the lock to the garage and only took my bikes....Larry

[ekpent]

 After as much time went by as it did I also think you did the right thing. Thing could have changed hands a couple times down the line. You got the bike back which was  a miracle and if charges were pressed it may have been a big hassle in the end that may have been something negative for you to deal with.

[calj737]

Punish him. He stole your bike, and I guarantee it's not the first time, nor the last time, he will do this. You just allowed a criminal to continue victimizing another person. AND, I'd expect a return visit from him in the coming days or weeks.

Sorry, my bleeding heart only extends to innocent victims, not to the criminals that prey upon them.

[70CB750]

You did the right thing.  Just imagine if a jury would agree if he is the thief, not likely.

It is quite possible he took the bike, but innocent till proven guilty.

We had something similar in our hunt club. I found a salt block 20 yards from a tree stand.  The guy said he never saw it in his life, knows nothing about it.  (Baiting is illegal in VA) Remote area too, nobody else but him hunted there, we could prove nothing, had to buy his story.  He is a cop too, imagine that.

[simon#42]

you boys are far to nice , round here there would be no conversation and no police  . the only blue light would be on the ambulance .

[Jerry Rxman Griffin aka MuthaF'er]

Thieves need to have the #$%* beat out of them. However at this point you can prove nothing more than it's YOUR bike and you recovered it. You are lucky. Hopefully he won't come extricate it again. If so then you might say he was the original thief. Bait it again and have a ball bat handy.

[TwoTired]

You taught him that laws don't apply to him and can be evaded.

If he "found" the bike, did he make any effort to find the proper owner?

Did he in fact have the bike in his possession and claim it was his legally?

Was he willing to surrender the bike to you without police intervention?

Has he learned not to possess stolen property, or just not get caught with it in the future?

Around here, the Police periodically auction off recovered and unclaimed bikes pretty cheap, when their storage space gets full.  Of course a "free" bike is far more desirable.

I keep by bikes locked up so they can't be simply wheeled or ridden away from my front yard.

I don't understand why proven criminals should be allowed to proceed unpunished.

[dave500]

we have a "stealing by finding" law here,he admitted he found and kept it,had he said he bought it of a guy who left town or craigslist or something?like I just found a rolls royce?

[dusterdude]

Unfortunately,around here,i cant shoot a thief unless he's in my houss

[Retro Rocket]

Unfortunately,around here,i cant shoot a thief unless he's in my houss

So drag him into your house...

[BLUE71TURBO]

  This is my answer for thieves............


                                           

[jb1974]

I had my generator taken from me last winter.The jerk was drunk and ran into the back of a snowmobile trailer.I got my stuff back,he was never caught and i wanted to shove him down the hole(ice fishing). It made me happy that he messed up his truck pretty good and didn't get to keep his new found stuff.(and yes it was a Honda generator)

[BobbyR]

I think you did the right thing. I do agree with some of the more aggressive. Down in the Hood he may have actually bought the bike, he knew it was Hot. It would have made for a greater charge. As a former PO I can tell you, he would have walked anyway. Considering the crimes the Court usually sees this ranks pretty low. You got your Bike back. Live your life and this will fade to noise. 

[DH]

Interesting stories and points of view
thanks for the posts. The guy was back inside the taco bell where he worked when i got back with my paperwork/proof, and the cop made the guy take the chain and lock. It could've easily escalated, but the police got there just as it was heating up. Probably a good thing, cause I'm 136 lbs of glory, minus the "glory" these days. He was bigger than me and I'm in no shape to relive my youth. You all bring up valid points, and I think the guy did deserve a lot more. The way the cop explained though, re enforced my decision not to pursue it furthur. I got the bike, and it would've been overkill after that. I found the bike within city limits, so that's where the first complaint is from. The
original police report was filed in the county where i live. There is a possibility that the
county I live in may still go after him. There has been a lot of bikes disappearing
recently, and if he is implicated at all, he'll get prosecuted that way. I think now, that my decision, considering the circumstances was right, but unsatisfying.
If he WAS the original thief, He knows where I live. I don't particularly want to
sleep with one eye open. At least now, I have had my carport enclosed into a garage to prevent anything else of this nature. So, bittersweet. I never dreamed I'd find that thing. Probably 8 months gone and within 3 miles the whole time, camoflajed
by the city...Man, all this writing made me hungry. "Hey Dear, Can I borrow your card? I got a craving for some Taco Bell.".....

[mono]

I would have casually told the guy that he might be the next thing they find on the side of the road, and thanked him for finding my bike. 

[martin99]

you boys are far to nice , round here there would be no conversation and no police  . the only blue light would be on the ambulance .

+1.
Would also have let Taco Bell know they are employing thieves.
No sympathy for him.

[70CB750]

Don't eat in THAT Taco Bell 

[Bailgang]

You taught him that laws don't apply to him and can be evaded.

If he "found" the bike, did he make any effort to find the proper owner?

Did he in fact have the bike in his possession and claim it was his legally?

Was he willing to surrender the bike to you without police intervention?

Has he learned not to possess stolen property, or just not get caught with it in the future?

Around here, the Police periodically auction off recovered and unclaimed bikes pretty cheap, when their storage space gets full.  Of course a "free" bike is far more desirable.

I keep by bikes locked up so they can't be simply wheeled or ridden away from my front yard.

I don't understand why proven criminals should be allowed to proceed unpunished.

That's assuming you have a police dept that actually gives a s..t In the OP's case he did have an officer that would've allowed him to press charges, my kid on the other hand had a rather eye opening experience with his local police dept. His landlord had a dispute with someone else and the next morning my kid found his car had been broken into and items stolen as well as many surrounding neighbors who's cars had been broken into. When my kids landlord found out about it he was almost positive who it was that did it so he called the police to let them know. They basically told him that they were too busy to mess with it and if he knew who it was and where he lived then go deal with it himself. I'm not making this up, I was spending that night at my kids place when it happened. The only reason my car wasn't broken into was because I had locked mine that night and my kid and his neighbors who's cars were broken into weren't locked. Everyone eventually got everything back but I was floored not only that the police didn't feel like doing a thing about it but they weren't even willing to escort them to the thief's house in case the guy got violent when they went to retrieve the stolen items.

[Duke McDukiedook]

Ah ze police.
Mostly good for eating free meals at local restaurants and writing moving violation tickets. 

I would have let the perp's responses dictate how I would have treated the situation.
In your case I would have probably decided to press charges since he insisted that was his bike when he acknowledged he 'found it in a ditch'.
You had papers saying otherwise so if he wanted to argue more I would have had him arguing in the back of a squad car.

If he would have said that it probably was yours since he found it in a ditch (which we all know is crap) I might have been more sympathetic.
After all, you are getting your bike back (although in a probably crappier state than when in your initial possession).

[ekpent]

Usually  common crackhead thief type of people would never be caught dead working an actual, real job, be bad on their image    I found a ditched bike on my property once and had the cops come and fetch it.

[754]

What kind of shape was the bike in when you got it back?
 If it was well maintained, i doubt he was the thief, could have bought it at a yardsale, flea market, pawnshop..
 Around here thieves usually spraypaint them if they are riding them, and tend not to maintain them.