What can I do about getting stolen property back? what steps can i take after i filled out a police report?

Question

I kicked my roomate out while i was at work yesterday and when i got home my 32" flatscreen tv, my xbox 360, and my digital camera where all gone. I called the police as soon as this happened and didn't touch anything. So i filed the report for stolen property and they said they would call me if anything came up. So my question is what other steps can i take to recover my property. oh and i gave them the reciepts for all of the items that were stolen. if someon could please help me i just want my stuff back without having to kill someone.

Answer 1

First, theft is not a capital offense. If you kill someone for stealing, in most states you will be charged with murder.

Second, if you don't get satisfaction from the police, file a suit in small claims court. The judgment will include court filing fees. Turn the judgment over to a collection agency and they will get the money for you.

Wouldn't you rather have new stuff, even if it takes a while to get the money from your friend?

Answer 2

Check out your local pawn stores. Hoepfully you still have the serial numbers and provided them to the PD.

Answer 3

You can try suing the roommate in civil court.  It appears you believe they stole the items.  Aside from that, if the items are not actually found, there is no way to get them back.

Answer 4

If the police find the property and you can prove that it is yours (you seem to have done this with the receipts), you should get it back. There could be a delay if the property is needed as evidence in court.

Answer 5

If you had the reciepts and know who the suspect is you can summon them to civil court. Even Judge judy if you want to get a laugh or two! They deal with this all the time. The only thing is if your roomate was paying rent did you give him a fair amount of notice?  I would get the reciepts back and give the police copies. Just go down to the station and ask for them in file and they will copy them. Let them know you are planning to file a civil suit and contact an attorney or go to the court house to file a lawsuit. Goodluck. If your roomate left the door unlocked and your property got stolen as well he should still be responsible. One more thing- he could be holding your possesions in leiu of a security deposit if there was one.