Beware of buying used guns . Read my nightmare!

[Tilos]

This might not be a good idea and could result in a 'visit' from more LEOs rolling up.

Probably a more pragmatic idea but I suspect the gun will still leave with the LEO.

Only if he takes the gun with him to the meeting.

Unfortunately, the OP has already admitted to the "detective to owning the gun.
It could have been "lost" in the interim.

To further your "could result in" troll, what if the Detective was NOT a detective.
No need to post anymore "pragmatic ideas" quoting my posts as they will be ignored by me.

If I agreed with you here, we'd both be wrong.
jmo,
.

 

[Kristopher Kam]

A yesr ago I bought a used shot gun from a local pawn shop. Paid $800.00 hard earned dollars .At the time it was a alot but I had to have the gun and I had been looking for one and came upon it by chance and bought it. My lucky day...... I thought. Last week I answered a call from a Detective and he ask if I had bought the shot gun and still had it .Yes I did why? He said he was sitting outside my house and needed to pick up the gun as it was reported stolen. I was at work so I made an appointment to meet with him on another day. In the meantime I am trying to understand how this can happen. I bought from a licensed business paid for the gun had all the checks done before I left the shop etc. Looks like I am out $800.00 and the gun. I always tell people that its safe to buy from a local dealer but I found out its not.Anyone been through this ? Any advice welcome especially from legal experts.Thank You Wayne 2064840753 Text or call

Name of the pawnshop?

There has to be a path for a civil suit. The thief/seller would have had to provide ID etc to pass muster. The pawn shop should be highly motivated to make it right to avoid a bad rep on here or in the community.

There was a story last year where a used car lot bought a car at auction then resold it to a customer. A few weeks later the police contact the new owner and seize the car because it was stolen. The car lot made it right and gave the money back (after a slight fuss)

How bold of someone to steal something then sell it... fill out forms, show your id etc.

 

[RVTECH]

I am thinking a person could sell a bunch of firearms to some dirtbag for big bucks (no ffl) and then later on report them as stolen.

You mean as in a illegal FTF sale?

Well, this is a possibility but the 'seller' had better have an iron clad story, with evidence, of how the theft occurred or it could unravel and be revealed as a lie.

 

[bionic knees]

almost 30 years ago I found myself in the market for a shotgun, my daughter's boyfriend says he knows a guy that has one he wants to sell. the price was $100. [first clue] clue ignored I give him a $100 and he goes to see his guy. he comes back with a really nice model 12 Winchester pump. I am delighted to get such a nice shotgun for $100, then reality starts to set in. I figure the gun is stolen, I had a buddy that had inlaws in L.E. so I asked him to have them run the #'s sure enough stolen. so I gave the gun to my buddy to have it returned to the owner, the owner was so happy to get the gun back that he inquired as to how L.E. got ahold of the gun, they told him and he sent $100 back through them to me. I told the daughter's boyfriend that he better find a better friend. he wouldn't say who sold him the gun, said it wouldn't be a good idea.

 

[The Heretic]

I am thinking a person could sell a bunch of firearms to some dirtbag for big bucks (no ffl) and then later on report them as stolen. Does the "victim" need to offer proof firearms were stolen?

For insurance claims, they usually require a police report

 

[The Heretic]

There was a story last year where a used car lot bought a car at auction then resold it to a customer. A few weeks later the police contact the new owner and seize the car because it was stolen. The car lot made it right and gave the money back (after a slight fuss)

In the case of automobiles, a dealer with a license could lose their license if they didn't make it right with the customer. Probably the same with an auction house.

This is one reason why a person should be wary of buying a car from these vacant lot "dealers" who are there one day and gone a month later. I've been pretty lucky so far - I have bought a few cars from such dealers, but generally I think twice before I do. For private sellers, I won't buy a car if they don't have the title - more than one seller has tried to get me to buy a car/truck when they didn't have the seller, one claiming he would go to the bank with the cash and get the title.

OTOH, I walked into Lithia BMW in Salem about 7 years ago and bought a car for $26K and drove off with the car, without paying a cent for it - on a Saturday, because my credit union would not be open to cut a check until Monday. I did return Monday with the bank check. Of course, they held the title (usually the bank/lender holds a title, even for dealers) - generally dealers handle all the title paperwork and it takes weeks to months for it to resolve.

 

[Alexx1401]

Assuming the dealer is still in business? I would start there. Give them a chance to make it right. As for the bank there is a window to file a dispute or "charge back". That window is LONG closed now. For me if the dealer will not make it right I would be looking at small claims court.

 

[cooper]

Could the " theft " of firearm not be discovered untill after the sale/BGC had been performed ? I could see this happening. Especially if firearm could be traced to owner through original purchase. Theft is discovered then reported.
Its a bad situation. You are out your $800 , the pawnshop is out whatever they paid for the shotgun. If the pawnshop had to reimburse you the $800 and eat their initial purchase price how is that fair ? ITS A BAD SITUATION.
NO WINNERS THERE. In Oregon would be the person reporting the shotgun stolen have to perform BGC and pay transfer fee ? It would be possible their lawful status could change plus transfer has occurred. So sorry for your situation. Maybe go shoot it one last time and strip it of any upgraded material.
DICK MOVE.....RETURN JUST THE RECEIVER.

 

[Kristopher Kam]

You mean as in a illegal FTF sale?

Well, this is a possibility but the 'seller' had better have an iron clad story, with evidence, of how the theft occurred or it could unravel and be revealed as a lie.

Crazy things happen. We had that guy here in WA selling guns without doing the transfer. He was warned multiple times by sheriff's without being charged.
Eventually he sold a gun that was used to kill a cop. He's in prison now.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

There is room for a small claims case or a charge reversal (if you used a card) if the shop refuses to refund you.

 

[TTSX]

One more example of why I buy new

 

[wpeteman]

I would think if you have the receipt with the serial number, you could go back to that local pawn shop and get a refund or an explanation for what has happened, at the least.

That, and ask that Detective why is tracking that particular gun.
"Yes, I did why" was the wrong answer (jmo).

I would never allow that Detective to just "pick up" the gun without further explanation of his legal right to do that.
If you do make that appointment to meet, do it in somewhere else, not your home or the police department.
You mentioned you bought the gun at a local pawn shop, maybe meet that detective at the Pawn Shop where you bought it, as they should have the gun in there books.

I understand that anyone can report any gun stolen with a description and serial number, without any proof of ownership.
Doing that, and getting someone with the legal ability to track that "reported stolen" gun from the factory/distributor/FFL/original purchaser and beyond, could lead to you!

Never post a pic of any gun with it's serial number visible, ever.
Good luck on your quest to keep the gun.
jmo,
.

Name of the pawnshop?

There has to be a path for a civil suit. The thief/seller would have had to provide ID etc to pass muster. The pawn shop should be highly motivated to make it right to avoid a bad rep on here or in the community.

There was a story last year where a used car lot bought a car at auction then resold it to a customer. A few weeks later the police contact the new owner and seize the car because it was stolen. The car lot made it right and gave the money back (after a slight fuss)

How bold of someone to steal something then sell it... fill out forms, show your id etc.

I will post the name of the shop Monday if they dont step up and refund my money.The fact is that they sold me a stolen gun. They are in the business and often take a loss on stolen items when the PD comes and picks them up. They have a means to write off those losses and its part of the Pawn Shop business to deal with stolen merchandise on a daily basis. They mostly make a profit on their sales. They should make every effort to square up with the customer and in this case its me.

 

[Paolung]

Is there any association at all between the background check system and a database of stolen firearms? Is there a national database of stolen firearms?

Otherwise this is no different than sending your bought-used Rolex in for service and finding out then that it was reported stolen.

When my guns were reported stolen, the officer I spoke with told me that there's a nationwide database in use for stolen guns that is different than the standard background check db (though they may "talk to each other", if that makes sense)

 

[oremike]

I know this won't be help but it's my story anyway. I bought a used gun form a local dealer and when he was waiting for my background check to clear the phone rings and he gets a puzzled look on his face while reading back the serial number. You got it, stolen and OSP on the way to pick it up. No loss to me but the dealer was out what he paid for the gun. Turns out he bought a group of guns from a different dealer and assumed he'd ran them all. Only to find out not this one. To be double safe sure, he ran them all and this one was the only bad hit.

 

[Paolung]

I am thinking a person could sell a bunch of firearms to some dirtbag for big bucks (no ffl) and then later on report them as stolen. Does the "victim" need to offer proof firearms were stolen?

I didn't have to offer proof per se, but I did give them a list of serial numbers. Of course, if you lie, that's a crime (falsifying police report), and if you try to collect on insurance, that's fraud.

 

[solv3nt]

In Oregon, supposedly, the OSP checks their system for whether the firearm is stolen during a BGC.

I've often wondered what it was they actually did to earn my $10.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Back when I worked at a Pawn Shop in Bellingham Washington....
We had to do a police report on every item , no matter what it was , that came into the shop , be it for loan or outright sale.

We once had a Luger that was on loan and became ours.
So...it had a police report on it when it came in....after 90 days and no loan renewal ...it went out for sale....
A fella bought it...we did the BGC on the buyer...and we got a delay.....
Sure enough the Luger was stolen....17 years ago...and had gone though two different legal owners...
( brought through two different FFL dealers ) before it ended up in our shop.

Long story short :
The original owner had long ago replaced it..so...we were able to sell it to the new buyer.
Andy

 

[Michael H]

I am guessing the problem is that the systems for reporting/tracking stolen guns are not robust - probably not kept up to date, especially when it is a matter of sharing the data between different jurisdictions.

Exactly... would not be hard it seems to link a Federal Background Check with the gun the buyer wants at the time of sale or trade one would think. Not a police officer but maybe one will chime in.

 

[wpeteman]

Maybe it's just me, but a phone call from 'someone sitting outside my house' had better be backed up with some paperwork and accompanied by some PoPo in uniform, not just a detective that is probably in a suit

They seem to treat the good guys like criminals and the criminals like the good guys

 

[Tilos]

When my guns were reported stolen, the officer I spoke with told me that there's a nationwide database in use for stolen guns that is different than the standard background check db (though they may "talk to each other", if that makes sense)

Sorry to hear you had guns stolen.
The serial numbers for guns being purchased are listed on the 4473 forms but I'm not sure they are included when the background check is "called in".

You (and I) know the form stays at the FFL whether paper or electronic but I'm not sure if the serial numbers appear on any electronic form/file sent for the background check.
That is a good question for any FFLs here.
jmo,
.