[mikeortman]

Just be careful! In SOME jurisdictions, you can get in trouble for 'stealing' if you take back something that was stolen. Possession vs Ownership are 2 different things. For instance, the thief may have stolen something, sold it to someone who bought it in good-faith, and you take it back from that person, it's technically theft!

File a police report, go through the right channels. If you know its yours, call the police department non-emergency and explain the situation

[nostromo]

I’d be curious what jurisdiction that is true.

In my jurisdiction in the US it doesn’t matter if someone purchased the stolen goods or not, the goods still belong to the owner. This is sometimes called the "nemo dat" rule:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nemo_dat_quod_non_habet

The person buying the stolen goods would need to file a claim against the thief to recover their money, but the goods still belong to the original owner. And this is how it should be, since it’s added reason not to buy goods you suspect are stolen.

And yes, you should always try and work with the police first and foremost.

[jorvi]

That is probably mostly a common law thing, and as the article notes

> however, in many cases, more than one innocent party is involved, making judgment difficult for courts and leading to numerous exceptions to the general rule that aim to give a degree of protection to bona fide purchasers and original owners

> The person buying the stolen goods would need to file a claim against the thief to recover their money

Generally as long as the purchase is made in good faith, you are wrong. It is the original owner that needs to file a claim against the thief.

Obviously, what constitutes a sale in "good faith" is a rather imprecise science, although one steady element is the sales price: it needs to have been appropriate for the item. So for example a mint bicycle or antique coin should sell near sticker price.

[ostacke]

Sweden is one such jurisdiction[1]. You can only retake what has been stolen from you if it is done shortly after the theft.

[1] https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sj%C3%A4lvt%C3%A4kt

[easyThrowaway]

How would they even prove that if it's in the open? "Stolen? No idea, I've always had that bike, I just forgot where I left it last time. Went and got it back. By the way, here's the receipt."

[Xmd5a]

This happened to me. I bought a pair of headphones (Nuraphones) on ebay, only to have them bricked by the company remotely.

IIRC, they had a security hole on their payment page: they forgot to implement SCA (strong customer authentification, aka 2FA for payments). Had they done this, the liability would have shifted onto the bank/card issuer. For some reason they decided to go after the customers in vain resentment, were acquired and their product was discontinued.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Nuraphone/comments/8iw3he/beware_on...

[randunel]

Another jurisdiction example would be Romania. Even if the thief themselves are in possession of the property you own, you can be charged with theft if you steal it back. The law clearly delimits possession from ownership.

[chii]

> it's technically theft!

i hope that isn't true. A buyer of stolen goods needs to accept that a consequence of it is that they could lose possession of said good. This is why for expensive goods, you should ensure you're not buying stolen goods.

[mosselman]

Here in the Netherlands if you purchase something and cant reasonably know that it was stolen, then you become the legal owner.

It is logical that it works that way. Proving something is owned by someone else can be quite hard for certain items.

[neilv]

This is the most useful advice: call the police non-emergency number, explain concisely, and ask them what to do.

A bunch of the other suggestions, here on HN Streetwise ProTips, can get self and/or friends beaten, stabbed, and/or arrested.

[joshuahaglund]

IDK where you live but where I am, unless it's an actively life threatening emergency, the Police will say they're busy. I watched a drunk driver try to drive away after smashing into a parked car, ripping a wheel off the parked car. The drunk driver kept trying to start his car to get away. People called the police but they said they're busy. Fortunately his car was totaled and wouldn't start either. Over an hour later someone picked him up. If they can't even bother to deal with an active drunk driver, they aren't gonna help retrieve a bike.

Not saying confronting thieves is for everyone. But it's not necessarily as physical as you think.

[Thorrez]

Someone I know's phone was stolen. He tracked it using the track my phone feature to a house, and contacted the police asking the police to help get it back. The police said no, it's too dangerous, not worth it.

[TylerE]

No, THE most useful advice is not to take legal advice from cops.

[vorpalhex]

It's probably a bad sign if you need permission from a desk clerk to get your property back.

It's great that you think _someone will handle that for you_ but it is probably a fantasy. Unfortunately you will probably need to self resolve. If you think it is going to escalate to violence, bring overwhelming force.

[darreninthenet]

This wouldn't be true in the UK, you can just take it back and use reasonable (which would be very light in the circumstances) force to do so.

[srockets]

The police won’t help you. It’s not their job.

[FabHK]

I was in Singapore in 2013 and there was a big sign on a street saying:

Crime Alert

THEFT OF BICYCLE

AT THIS NEIGHBOURHOOD

ON 20 MARCH 2013 @ 7 AM

Witnesses, please call Tanglin Police Division

(phone number redacted)

[happyopossum]

Move, or elect better local politicians. Your city is broken.

[GeekyBear]

It depends on the city.

> Police to give out free air tag tracking devices to combat rise in stolen vehicles

https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/police-to-give-out-f...

[wahnfrieden]

They will at best waste your time, and at worst they will cause you and your family harm for involving them. In Toronto even a stolen car is not enough to get their attention if you are not a high-profile business owner.

[MagicMoonlight]

Please evidence this claim.

I know it’s false in the UK and I’d imagine it is false in any country where the law is based on UK law.

Failing to retrieve it at the time is going to mean losing it forever. If you find a crackhead with your phone and wait for someone else to retrieve it, that phone is long gone.

[harha]

Some jurisdictions are great at protecting all the wrong people

[Nakagawa835]

Helpful knowledge, thanks!

[wouldbecouldbe]

the police often won't do anything

[jki275]

Oh come on, that's not even hyperbole, it's straight out flame bait, and it's absolutely false.