Did'nt know I had 2 stolen cars until today!

Briefly, back in 2004 I approached a lady about two old fix up chevys out behind her rural house. She said I could have them for free as she just wanted them out of there because she was tired of looking at them. She passed away in 2006. Fast forward to today, a deputy sheriff stops by today and informs my son and wife that 2 of our old Chevys were reported stolen 4 years ago. They explained the Chevys were given to us, we did not steal them. I did not get any kind of letter of the transaction at the time either. Very lucky for us though we know the deputy and he knew the deceased woman. Needless to say, the deputy and the owner of the cars came over this evening. I explained how I got the cars, he is not going to press charges. I am giving back the 51 4 door which is very complete (good thing all I have have ever done so far was to buy some parts for it that were not put on yet) and he is going to get back to me about selling me the 50 2 door which was and still is a parts car. Thank God I am not facing two counts of grand theft auto tonight. MORAL; to anyone else out there who comes across cars in a rural area - be sure that the person giving you or selling you a car (s) actually owns them or has the authority to do so.

 

Thanks for sharing. It's a good warning to any of us who might get a little careless about having paper on all our cars. I'm glad you didn't have more trouble from it.

 

There goes that saying again ... that nothing in life is free.
Glad to hear all parties were decent about it!

 

Definately coulda been much worse!

 

you didn't get the lady to sign the abandoned vehicle form for them, and apply for title? hmmm.....

 

You should always, at a minimum, get a notarized bill of sale reciting that the seller, in fact, owns the vehicle, there are no liens against it, and he/she has the lawful right to sell it and it is being sold free and clear of all liens. You can use the same form no matter what kind of car/truck you are buying. Taking a little extra time can save a lot of headaches later.

 

I think it's great that all parties involved can see eye to eye on this matter, but in the strictest sense, you performed a service by removing the cars from the womans property, and have stored them for the past 4 years.

If it gets ugly, you can always fall back on this, and claim storage fees, or apply for clear title on abandoned vehicles.

Very unfortunate that the "owner" was so careless with not keeping on good terms with the property owner, and now you are suffering a loss due to his neglegence.

....But in the end, it's always best to keep the peace with all parties involved.

 

haha, yeah right.

 

Kinda puts a bad spin on all the tales of finding a car and just hauling it home. Good thing the owner was cool about it. This could have gotten ugly for everyone involved. Also brings up the importance of documenting things.

 

I have a friend that deals in 55-57 Chevrolet cars and parts. He bought a rolling 55 Chevy shell that had been a drag car from years earlier. The car still had some faded lettering on it, including the owner/driver name. So, he manages to track down the former owner trying to get some history on the car. He finds out the car had been stolen something like 25 years earlier, and the guy wants the car back; plus, he was a retired deputy sheriff. Long story short, he got his car back at the cost of my friends investment. What was left of the car, just a rolling frame and shell without any kind of interior, front end, or moulding, I think the retired deputy should have let him keep it. But, he was a real JACKASS. I'd trashed what was left of it before he came to get it.

 

Sounds like the old lady got tired of looking at a couple of old cars on the neighbors property, not her own. "Yeah, sure take'm for free. Tired of looking at 'em.' Either that or she was a car thief I guess since 2004 was just about 4 years ago so she couldn't have been too tired of looking at them by then.

 

Idiot, If I can't have it nobody will huh???? Jackass

 

Just reverse the roles, especially after all the tough guy shit on threads on stealing. Always, always, always, cover your ass! I have reciepts signed for cars I bought and sold from when I was a kid, you just never know.-MIKE

Did I mention to always cover your ass?

 

I'd kinda like to be sitting there when you use this argument on a Prosecuter and Judge in court. I had a bunch of stuff stolen 5 years ago that was my dads before he died. You can bet your a** that I'll prosecute to the FULLEST extent of the law if I ever find it.

It sounds like the deputy worked this out in the best possible way, could have gotten nasty if he didn't. It's kinda nice to see common sense work for once.
Larry T

 

I agree with ya LARRY T
COMMON SENSE its a lost ART

 

Think the deputy gave the insurance money back to them? Seems like he voided any rights to it if he accepted a settlement. It should belong to the insurance company (assuming he had it, anyway).

 

Back in the 70's, I heard that a couple of guys were trying to unload a stolen '56 Nomad. It was sold to a guy that made it a race car. Couple of years later, the police did a check at the local track and recovered several stolen cars that had been made into race cars.

I found a great deal on a custom '67 Bug that I was going to use as a dd. The price was so good, I checked the pan for the factory vin and verified the numbers before I bought it. Never can be too careful, especially with out-of-state sales that only have a bill of sale.

 

It's not only the car but, also the engines. My cousin who started me off in hot rodding when i was a pre-teen bought a 55 Chevy with a 327 out of a vette. I don't know all the details on the car or engine but I do know the outcome. My cousin almost always built his own cars but on occasion would buy or trade for another car.

He lived in the Bronx and was pulled over by the cops one night. They went over the car and told him to pop the hood. Seems the engine was out of a stolen vette that was never recovered. My cousin lost the car and almost went to jail for it. But he wasn't no fool. He got hold of the guy who sold or traded the car to him. Cleared my cousin of any wrong doing. There's a moral to this story somewhere.

 

Always pay at Least $1.00$$$ for anything you buy and always get a bill of sale. Don't be a tight ass >>>>.

 

Gone in 126,144,000 Seconds. That good everyone was cool, but four years seems like a long time to act on the owners behalf.

 

My Bug was stolen 15 years ago. I still want it back. It only had minimum insurance so no insurance company involved. If it's found, it's still mine.

 

Are you sure the guy who 'owns' the car is legit? Maybe he's just looking to make a fast buck. Did he provide proof of ownership? I am the eternal pessimist, and I would think that after four years he would have been abel to track the cars down. Also the old lady didn't die for two years. He could have tracked her and the cars down then if he wanted to. Something don't add up.

 

getting a bill of sale is essential when buying anything these days. one way i better that is taking a few pictures of the person next to my purchase. pretty hard to prove you "stole" anything with pictures.

 

the code here is so rigid that homebuilt cars are a perpetual target for cops looking for "stolen" parts. got a SBC in a car that never had one? better have a reciept for the SBC then, and any stuff that doesn't "match up" to the car in question. whole cars have been impounded and disposed of because of questionable "stolen" parts being used on them. it's a real popular method of fucking with people in these parts. report them for stealing or stripping stolen cars. keep your shit hidden is my watchword, and get paper on everything you have.
i've been given a couple of cars without papers; i got so paranoid about it i won't take them home, i pass'em by now.
shit, i even keep titles from cars i junked years ago.

 

I'm just curious when exactly the cars were reported stolen? Seems to me that if I leave something of mine on someone else's property with no contact for at least two years, the person dies, and the estate is disposed of, I'm pretty well screwed. Especially cars this old where the tags are so easily removed.

 

agree'd im still searching for a car to call my own and in these days 99% dont seem to have titles any more. i have come close to buying my dream car twice but both times the sellers refused to sign any papers. once they refuse to sign a paper i asume there is somthing fishy and walk away. i will not buy anything unless there is some sort of paper trail to prove things are legit.

so if you have a car stolen and at some point find it you wouldnt want it back? you dont think that people should have the right to get somthing back that was stolen from them ? and why would you trash it ? what are you a 10 year old it sounds like you have alot of growing up to do. i know if any of my cars or motorcycles ever get stolen from me and i find them years later you bet ill do what ever it takes to get the car or motorcycle back even if its just a bare shell/frame

 

Yeah.. it seems the bad guy who sold the stolen parts never gets any of the trouble, I hate that, and I'd hate to have a stolen car that I call my own and have it taken away but its not the original owners fault, in the original case here I would have got those cars into my name soon after the lady gave'm to me. Dunno if the guy could come back and take them but you never know. You should of had them covered!

 

if the cars were no left on YOUR property that 'storage' excuse only works if you actually have a business license of some kind. And even then...you're required to notify authorities that you've "recovered" some abandoned vehicles and here are the VINs and a copy of the notarized statement from the property owner.

"some through the fire, some through the flood, some through the water, but all through the blood"

dj

 

Don't know the laws there but in Il. you could've and should've gotten a bonded title for them when you got them, after 3yrs if no body proves they own 'em, they're yours w/ a clean title. Then you could've asked the guy to eat you!!!

 

Let me open my mouth here to change feet, again. First of all, I really would'nt trash a car, any car, for any reason; but I also would'nt buy a car without paper. And, after 25 years, and all that's left is a rusted out shell, I can't see anyone wanting it back to even attempt to reconstruct it. Especially at this deputies age. After I posted my first response I talked to the "friend" again. He originally traded a 56' 150 2 dr, running, driving car, to a kid who had the 55'; the kid also put up some cash also. He took the 55' just to part/scrap out, but went ahead and contacted the name of the person on the car (the deputy) just to find out the history of this old drag car. Turns out the deputy raised the roof, threated legal action, wanted his car back, and the "friend" said "come and get it". The deputy NEVER did, and it did get scrapped out. And the kid has'nt come back for the paperwork on the 56'; guess he thinks because he stuck someone with the 55' he has some explaining to do. Now, this "friend" buys untitled cars all the time, strips them of saleable parts, cuts them up, and sells the scrap. Again, something I would'nt do. He also gets paper on some of these cars, and the ones scrapped out he keeps the VIN tag/title for resale. Again, something I would'nt do; actually, I did it once with a 55' 2 dr wagon converted to a P.U. truck I bought once for parts only. I kept the VIN tag/title but GAVE it to someone who needed a VIN tag/title. Everyone knows how these old cars get passed around, sold, resold, titles never changed, lost, never had a title, and many of them are probably stolen. OK, so I expressed an opinion, and a few folks let their blood pressure rise. SORRY! Now, I gotta go brush my teeth. Butch/56sedandelivery.