Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Virginia
Can I get in trouble if I buy something that turns out to be stolen?
I own a business that sells trading cards. A 16-17 year traded in 4 cards over the course of a 6 month period. The period he traded them in was from 6 months ago to 1 year ago. The cards had an average price tag of about 300.00 each.
The parents are now claiming the cards were stolen from them and are threatening me with legal action. I had no idea the cards were stolen since the kid was a regular and the cards he traded in aren't out of the question for a kid to have. I see them traded in several times a year so while it's not an everyday thing it's not unusual.
Should I be worried? I have no problem giving the cards back if I can get reimbursed what I gave in trade for them.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Can I get in trouble if I buy something that turns out to be stolen?
If the cards were provably stolen, you will have to return them to their rightful owners, irrespective of whether you're reimbursed for anything you paid for them. (Your situation is no different from that of the hapless
buyer of a vehicle which later turns out to be stolen and to his subsequent dismay, finds that he must return the vehicle to its rightful owner minus his monetary outlay. Of course, this hapless buyer has a potential cause of action against the fraudulent seller, if he can ever catch up with him. Yeah, right.)
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