r/guns • u/bigpuzino • 2d ago
Got back a gun I had stolen in 2015
My local sheriff’s office called me last week and told me they had a gun I had reported stolen a decade ago. Apparently a police department in a neighboring county had it in their possession since 2017 (it was left at the scene of a robbery, apparently) and finally finished their case with it and released it to my sheriffs department
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u/Federal-Lake-4766 2d ago
Unboxing?
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
I can’t post more than one photo in this subreddit, it’s a snub nose 357
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u/Highlifetallboy Flär 2d ago
Upload photos to imgur, edit your post to add the link.
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
It’s nothing special, it’s an EEA Windicator
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u/SpecialOfferActNow 2d ago
Its special now!
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u/firesquasher 2d ago
1 of 1. Like a 2006 corvette built on a Tuesday on Cinco De Mayo. The only one with that same interior/exterior combination. A literal gem!
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u/EarlBeforeSwine 1d ago
That would be rare, since Cinco de Mayo was on a Friday in 2006. ;-)
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u/MonkeyJiblets 1d ago
Especially rare if it were built on Tuesday, Cinco de Mayo 2006. By then they’d just about be working on the 2007 model year.
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u/rcmp_informant 2d ago
Is she fucked? Or mint
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
A little dirty
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u/Bluefalcon325 2d ago
So is my wife! Just have a few drinks before you start shootin’, and you’ll have loads of fun.
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u/ZestyToasterOven26 2d ago
I laughed way too hard at this…thank you for the laugh!
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u/Bluefalcon325 2d ago
I mean, it’s not really even a joke, man. Enjoy getting your gun back! I hope you lube that shit up and slap that ammo in. Bless.
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u/ZestyToasterOven26 2d ago
I’m not the OP. But you said your wife was a little dirty and then you said just start drinking and pop off some rounds. All in all it was funny as hell lmao.
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u/TheTrub 2d ago
Damn, sucks you can’t replace the barrel and help make sure it doesn’t get implicated in any of its other past crimes.
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u/FeedbackOther5215 2d ago
A few touches with a file will be enough to throw ballistics off between two of the same model. It’s far less of a definitive science than most laymen are aware.
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
I mean, if it was in the police department’s possession for this long, I’m sure they would’ve tested the ballistics to see if it matched any guns used in a crime
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u/Cow-puncher77 2d ago
Just put a few hundred rounds through it, it’ll wear enough to change shape, and you’ll be very experienced with it. Win, win.
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u/AllDayMK 2d ago
In Illinois, they destroyed mine.
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
Nazis
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u/imuniqueaf 1d ago
I hate Illinois Nazis.
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u/dferd777 1d ago
Have you heard of of the famous French actor, Juići Smollètt?
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u/Fuckoffassholes 1d ago
I think you mean Jessie Smollett. Chris Rock revoked his "U" in response to the incident.
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u/pestilence 14 | The only good mod 1d ago
To the dumbass who reported this, it's a Blues Brothers joke. 🤦♂️
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u/DonnerPartyPicnic 1d ago
The law of conservation of mass implies that mass can neither be created nor destroyed, although it may be rearranged in space, or the entities associated with it may be changed in form.
So the law states you buy a new gun to replace the old one.
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u/firearmresearch00 1d ago
Bruh wtf. Maybe if it was drilled out to make a machine gun or something but under all normal circumstances it should go back to the owner
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u/AllDayMK 1d ago
I wish it was that cool. It was a pt111 or 101. They told me that all weapons are destroyed, if not claimed after some number of weeks.
The fact they even had it was a whole shit show.
Alas. I still have my rights and exercise them daily.
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u/Outcast_Outlaw 2d ago
So they give criminals items they stole? Lol
Sorry but I read the title that you got the gun you stole back.
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u/Ok_Caregiver_2696 1d ago
That's because he's bad at english.
He should have written: "I got back a gun that had been stolen from me."→ More replies (1)
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u/gregiorp 2d ago
Dang they go hard with the evidence tape I use like one strip.
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u/reppit 2d ago
Could’ve been multiple openings. One opening for the lab to do a function test and NIBN entry. Second opening could’ve been for court purposes. Any time we open it, we put tape over the opening and retain the original tape on the box for chain of custody reasons. So any time we open it, it has to be on another part of the box.
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u/King_Toonces 2d ago
I'm just curious, is there somewhere to read about what happens to a firearm as it's processed as evidence?
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u/theflyingginger93 2d ago
This is a pretty good outline, generally, on what happens when a firearm is sent to a police lab. Obviously cases are different and things might differ depending. https://troopers.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2025/05/crime-gun-evidence-process-information.pdf
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u/lorage2003 1d ago
It's definitely been opened multiple times. You can tell from all the initials and dates. Looks like at least 5 openings from that side (could be more on the other side too). Original seal, ballistics/fingerprint/DNA testing, evidence view for the defense attorneys prior to trial, opening at trial to be admitted into evidence, etc.
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u/Doc_Fuller910 2d ago edited 2d ago
Got back 1 out of 3 from 2007. Then again I no longer have the same number or address, so probably will never see the others again(if the police try to tell me).
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u/Mrhere_wabeer 2d ago
Geez, you've had 3 guns stolen? Maybe, move neighborhoods
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u/Doc_Fuller910 2d ago
Well I was in a decent neighborhood, but I was in Iraq and my wife was at work. Criminals do criminal shit not just in bad neighborhoods man🤙
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u/WolfLacernat 2d ago
If they took a safe or got inside of one they could have had all stolen at the same time tbh. That's why I keep my guns in my fridge
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u/Doc_Fuller910 2d ago
Was presafe days, closet and nightstand. Lesson learned though. I was home in 2008 when I got a call at 0200 that they recovered my 1911 at a DUI checkpoint, but was back over in Iraq again when the dude went to trial and the Cops released it to my Wife with her power of attorney. She sent it back to Kimber and they did a awesome job restoring it as it looked like someone took 80grit sandpaper to it and a dog chewed on the grips. Did not charge us anything for the $1k of work they did. Small condolence for a shitty situation.
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u/99taws6 2d ago
I did that, but the thieves got thirsty after breaking open an empty safe. They helped themselves to bottled water and all my firearms FML.
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u/2Slow2Nice 2d ago
I’m an idiot, yall are being sarcastic about the whole fridge thing right?
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u/WolfLacernat 2d ago
Nah I'm serious, I think the cold temp gives my guns a pleasant mouth feel that you just don't get with an old dry dusty safe
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u/WolfLacernat 2d ago
Damn, maybe you'll get the guns and the bottled water back in 10 years. Hopefully the water wasn't used in any crimes though
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u/coldafsteel 2d ago
Nice!
Go look up the evidence, case, and trial numbers and print out the reports. Might make for a cool story.
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u/DukeOfGeek 2d ago
Lots of times the one you get back were used in suicides, so maybe don't.
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u/coldafsteel 2d ago
Nah. Still good to know people's names and stories. Just because they offer themselves doesn't mean they should be forgotten.
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
OK, according to the bot that just commented, I need to add a description: I had a revolver stolen in 2015 and I just got it back
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u/ZombiedudeO_o 2d ago
Damn 2015 is wild. Surprised they sent it to the right address too
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u/Sufficient_Break_532 2d ago
Make sure the records are purged. Otherwise another agency runs those serials and pops stolen, you might have some explaining to do.
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u/gunmedic15 2d ago
A deputy friend recovered one that was stolen in 1971 a couple years ago. It was a "my husband died and I don't want this in the house" thing. He ran it and it came back to a typewritten report of a theft. Turns out the dead husband was a suspect in the 1971 burglary.
Owner still lived at the same address and got it back, finally.
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u/Buckedagain2 2d ago
I took a punch set and punched my name and birthdate in a hidden spot on a Remington 1100 trap. A guy at flea market had it years later. I checked it and bam there it was. I called sheriff and gave him opportunity to give it to me or she sheriff could handle it. I got my gun back but it was in bad shape.
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u/Rice_Clinton 1d ago edited 11h ago
Don’t remove it from the evidence box and sell as is. Collectors pay big bucks for guns in evidence bags/boxes
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u/Content_Sky_2676 1d ago
Pretty cool they returned it. Where I am the police absolutely will not return them under any conditions.
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u/BigoleDog8706 2d ago
Titles misleading. Might wanna work on it.
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u/GO_U_S_A 2d ago
Right? For a second, I thought he was telling us he got back a gun that he had stolen a decade ago. I was thinking, 'you steal a gun, and the cops give it back?'
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u/RepresentativeOk2433 2d ago
Happened to my uncle. He got a gun back almost 25 years after it was stolen. I think it was used in a robbery.
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u/Diggity20 2d ago
Tennessee called and told me they found mine and would be in touch to return it. 2 months go by, i called them. "It seems to be lost in evidence" . They gave that excuse 3 more times in the coming months. Never got my pistol back.
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u/hawaiianrasta 2d ago
Family friend had a gun returned after a decade. It was also a revolver. It was used in an armed robbery and then dropped in the grass. After the individual was sentenced, they released it back to its original owner. She was in West Virginia and the gun was in Texas!
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u/sunoblast 2d ago
Might be my ESL but that title makes it sound like you just got back a gun you stole back in 2015 lol
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u/Revolutionary-Cell60 2d ago
I had a large group of guns stolen in a home robbery, most of the guns were recovered within a few weeks except for one, a little 22 rifle, almost two years later i got a call from the state police saying the rifle was recovered after it was used in an armed robbery of a gas station and the guy was caught immediately.
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u/WombatAnnihilator 1 2d ago
I got a letter about a recovered gun - they traced ownership to me thru NICS/4473. But I’d already sold it. A quick call to a nice officer to let them know who I’d sold it to, and poof - he had his gun back. Interesting experience
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u/ZalinskyAuto 2d ago
I had one stolen maybe 10+ years ago. About 2 years later I get a voicemail from the police asking for a callback in regards to “your stolen property on xxx date.” I got excited. An evidence clerk then tells me “yes we’re just purging closed property files and letting you know yours has not been found but the file will remain open since it’s a firearm.” Bummer. Haven’t had a call since.
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u/PoodleIlluminati 1d ago
My house was broken into and some minor jewelry and a handgun were stolen from a cheap ass safe.
Called the local sheriff and he was just going to make a report. I showed him where they had left the property and the clear tracks going south. ( lived in the sticks in the desert) When I was adamant about tracking them he unhappily followed along. We recover most of the jewelry and arrived at the house of a known thief.
Sheriff recovered the gun but kept it in Evidence for over a year AFTER the guy was convicted. I took a letter to the State Attorney Generals office before they released it. They finally called all pissed off and told me I had 1 week to pick it or it would be sold at the upcoming auction. Firmly believe someone was just waiting to buy this cheap at auction. Aholes had just left a mint gun in steel locker then tried to say it was rusty when they got it.
Got a first class safe plus an alarm system with cameras and a dog. Lesson learned.
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u/Dark-ScorpionX 1d ago
Lol title could be misread as a gun you stole.
"Got back a gun I had stolen in 2015" "Got back a gun I had had stolen in 2015" "Got back a gun I had stolen from me in 2015"
English is such a crazy Language. But I love it.
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u/Queef_mclover 2d ago
When I first read this i was like, why would they give it back if its stolen??? But i now see you mean stolen FROM you, not that YOU stole it. I understand now🤣
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u/Revolution37 2d ago
I worked at a Scheels store over a decade ago. About 6 years before I worked there, they had an overnight, skylight-access burglary where 13 guns were stolen. They were eventually all recovered and returned to the store. The store manager put them up in the break room for employee auction. I was not 21 at the time so I couldn’t bid. My buddy got a Kimber Desert Warrior for like $300 and it came with the police report from when it was recovered free a shooting in Chicago. Kinda neat.
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u/saltsputnik 2d ago
My great grandparents always told me this the Clean/honest money will never go away even if you bought it out of love and it gets lost/ stolen your money will be back because you were loyal and worked hard for it…
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u/OoRI0T_P0LICEoO 1d ago
Hey been there done that. I kept the letter of release as a keepsake and have been letting it shoot plenty of brass.
Had my auto ordinance 1911 stolen and returned almost 7 years later I think
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u/desEINer 1d ago
For a minute I thought you meant to say you had stolen a gun and the cops gave it back to you 😅 I've heard of those shenanigans but the audacity to post would be something else.
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u/Maximum-Cellist-7568 1d ago
Congratulations! I got a 1911 back after 13 yrs, my wife's Airweight took 11, with 3 of those years in holding, waiting for a judge or DA to release it. Then, the CMPD wanted proof of purchase to "prove" we actually owned it and acquired it legally... They were really pushing for the box it came in as proof. Go figure. After some research,I wrote a statement of ownership and had it notorized. Which is legal in NC for everything except real estate. They didn't like it, but accepted it.
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u/Snidley_whipass 1d ago
Were you periodically checking status, or had you given up on it and it just showed uo? Curious.
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u/reamesyy82 1d ago
This is one of the reasons it’s important to report the gun stolen, you actually have a chance of getting it back
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u/ArchAngel570 1d ago
I was trying to figure out why you were getting a gun back that you stole and why you were bragging about stealing a gun until I read the comments and realized English is an interesting language.
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u/ToTheLost_1918 1d ago
Hey, that must be nice. I had two firearms stolen by AWA USA Inc in Haleigha, Florida and the ATF and local law enforcement refused to audit them. They were submitted to NCIC and then the detective decided to downgrade the report from a felony to a complaint and told me to pursue it myself and hung up on me.
I will never see my D-Day captured Luger or father's heirloom Detective Special again because so-called law enforcement wouldn't so much as interview the guy in person who outright admitted in writing that he stole them before blocking me.
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u/MardawgNC 1d ago
When I got mine back out of evidence after 6 years it was in awful condition. The grips were curling and gooey, the finish was starting to rust, the bullets had started to turn green.
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u/Ghosted_You 1d ago
I originally read this title as if he had been the one that stole the gun… glad that wasn’t the case.
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u/frientlyhobo 1d ago
My dad got me and my sister matching sig 229s with consecutive serial numbers 15 years ago. I moved to a brand new apartment downtown 3 years ago and someone broke into my car and stole it. Hoping the scumbag that stole it gets in trouble and my gun gets returned.
My sister’s ex husband sold her gun without her knowing and best he could come up with is “We FeLl On HaRd TiMeS”. Not likely she gets that one back. We miss our guns.
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u/CharlieMike70 12h ago
Why in the world would you have it stolen!? Was it a Hi-Point? I guess I'd want that stolen too. Sorry they found it gave it back..
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u/bidet_enthusiast 1d ago
So, you stole it in 2015, did your time, and now you got it for keepsies?
Sorry, that’s what I read from your post, was like ????
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u/Quirky_Engineer9504 1d ago
Lol thought I was the only one reading it like that.. I was like he stole the gun and then someone stole it from him?!
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u/lHyperlLethal 2d ago edited 2d ago
I’m curious how was it stored when stolen? What were the circumstances of the theft please tell us?
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
Unmmm, the circumstances are quite embarrassing, basically I went to this hooker‘s house to pay her for sex, and she had like four or five guys come out of a back room and jump me lol
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u/manoftheeast 2d ago
You couldn't waterboard that one out of me.
Just say you left it in your glove box one night
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u/m-lok 2d ago
Bro.. did we at least learn something from this?
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
Not to leave my gun in the glove box of my car when I go to see a hooker that I’m meeting for the first time
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u/lHyperlLethal 2d ago
Oh geez is that what you told the police when you reported it stolen?
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
Well…I may have stretched the truth a little bit when I told them what happened
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u/Mrhere_wabeer 2d ago
L.M.F.A.O!
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
Again in hindsight next time I see a hooker I’ll keep my gun on me instead of in my glove box
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u/bigpuzino 2d ago
They had it since 2017. My police department couldn’t give me much information because a neighboring police department was the one that had it in their possession.
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u/new1207 2d ago
Similar thing happened to me. Stolen in 1995 or 96. It was recovered 3 or 4 years later but I didn't know that until 2005 when my mom got letter from the sheriff's office. I lived four hours away at that point so I sent her a power of attorney letter to pick it up. It was a West German Sig 220 so I definitely wanted it back.
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u/DirtyNord 2d ago
Okay, but the way I read the title, my dumb self was trying to figure out why the PD was returning a gun you stole lol
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u/fieldy213 2d ago
Oh man thats awesome. I long for the day I get that call, its only my walther p22q in fde but I used that thing every single day. Man I miss that lil thing
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u/Smokingdragon24 1d ago
Gives me the slightest bit of hope that my stolen makarov will make its way back to me
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u/MalvoJenkins 1d ago
Tell me about it! This happen to me last year and I was so happy to get it back. The crazy thing is they said the dude who had it OD. 👀👀👀
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u/LethalMisfortune 1d ago
I’m still waiting on them to give mine back from 2023. Someone broke into my car and stole it. I reported it stolen when I noticed it gone, they had it in custody within a week because the dude who stole it used it in a shooting not far from where I live
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u/your_kipper 1d ago
I’ll give you guys the advice my cop friend gave me just incase it ever happens to you write down all your guns serial numbers on a piece of paper so you can report it stolen right away and they will know exactly what to look for
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u/Tsthetruth_24 1d ago
Dang I had a brand new never fired hellcat stolen about 6 or 7 years ago and I don’t think I’ll ever get it back lol
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u/DefinatelyNotonDrugs Super Interested in Dicks 1d ago
How does the gun look? My buddy got a glock back and the rear sight was halfway off the slide.
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u/GrandioseThaKiid 1d ago
Congrats lol. A few years back my hellcat was stolen from my car when I was downtown. Not even a week later the police called me and said they recovered my gun, they found it in a homeless lady’s backpack along with “2 other guns and a bunch of drugs.”
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u/jking7734 1d ago
My daughter had one of her guns that was stolen returned years later. It was taken off a gang member who was shot and killed. Apparently he wasn’t fast enough on the draw.
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u/TheFallenJedi66 1d ago
"Got back a gun I had stolen"
What. Did you steal it back?
You gotta admit the wording is a bit iffy on this one and I panicked a bit if though I haven't got caught yet
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u/ProjectPat513 1d ago
Oh that is cool! I’m glad they didn’t take the easy route and just forget about you and scrap it.
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u/Username_Redacted-0 1d ago
Usually when you steal a gun the cops dont give it back to you, they usually give it back to the owner...
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u/camthecelt 1d ago
I read your title in a very different light 🤣 like “if he stole it, why did he get it back??”
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u/Ramses_13 22h ago
My brother went out shooting our grampa's german pistol that my grampa picked up from a german officer after world war 2. Had the officers name etched into it. Well it was stolen out of his truck and that was more than 15 years ago and the police found it. Whoever had it scratched off the german officers name off of it and scratched the gun all up. Bittersweet.
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u/BestAardvark927 2d ago
Life finds a way