Purchase of a Motorcycle that May Have Been Stolen
My question involves personal property located in the State of: California
Hi this is my first time posting here so please forgive me if this is in the wrong place.
I have pretty unique situation that I need some help with.
My friend bought a motorcycle a couple of months ago from someone off craigslist. It's a vintage bike that was mostly in pieces and was priced as such. My friend who is a custom bike builder bought it with the idea that he would restore it and either keep it or sell it for a profit.
The bike had no title; which is a pretty common thing for a 40-50 year old bike. He did get a bill of sale from the DMV and had the bike inspected on 3 separate occasions by the police to ensure that he wasn't buying anything stolen.
So he put it together and got it all the paperwork in order. He received the title in his name as well as registration. He also insured the bike. He then started doing additional work to it, both mechanical and cosmetic.
And, after a while he decided that he wanted to sell it. He put the bike on Craigslist and cycle trade and got a lot of responses.
HERE'S THE PROBLEM: One person that showed up to look at the bike claimed that the bike had been stollen from him months earlier. He brought the police with him. The police looked over my friend's paperwork and told the guy there was nothing they could do. The bike was titled and registered to my friend. He, until that point, had never reported it stollen. Apparently, the bike was titled in Florida and never transferred to California. Also this never put it in his name. It belonged to his grandfather who has since passed away.
My friend still plans on selling the bike but is worried that this guy will make this a civil matter.
Does this other guy have any legal recourse here? If so, how long does he have to take this to court?
Sorry for rambling. ANY HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!
THANKS
Re: Purchase of a Motorcycle that May Have Been Stolen
Stollen can be yummy, but the word you're looking for is "stolen".
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Quoting
CALISOUL
One person that showed up to look at the bike claimed that the bike had been stolen from him months earlier. He brought the police with him. The police looked over my friend's paperwork and told the guy there was nothing they could do. The bike was titled and registered to my friend.
Then your friend seems to be in the proverbial (and literal) driver's seat.
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Quoting CALISOUL
He, until that point, had never reported it stolen. Apparently, the bike was titled in Florida and never transferred to California. Also this never put it in his name. It belonged to his grandfather who has since passed away.
If he's relying on documents that ostensibly show that his grandfather, at some point in the past half-century, owned the motorcycle, that's not of itself evidence as to whether his grandfather sold the motorcycle or gave it away as a gift. That also is not enough, of itself, to show that he was the sole or intended heir, entitled to receive the motorcycle from his grandfather's estate.
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Quoting CALISOUL
My friend still plans on selling the bike but is worried that this guy will make this a civil matter.
That could happen. Generally speaking, we're talking about three years from when the person learned the location of the motorcycle.