Stolen goods from eBay

No_Eye_Deer

Seems to me that you are in the situation where a buyer has bought a car that is later found to be stolen. The outcome is usually that it the car is returned to the rightful owner. If that turns out to be an insurance company then sometimes a deal can be done where you keep the item for an agreed amount. Could be your best bet if you can recover your money from the seller.
As for the hard drive wait and see what happens. How much did you get for the smaller one (or can you get it back), I suppose you may have to negotiate that amount with the rightful owner if they insist on the laptops return. Don't see why you would have to return it with the larger hard drive though, thats not stolen.

hsj2011

I had a reply from the seller last night (at 11.59pm). The seller said that the laptop was sold by her ex partner who she now has nothing to do with. She gave me his name but doesn't know where he lives and has basically said it's not her problem.

I don't know if it's just me but if someone told me that my ex had used my eBay account to sell stolen property, I'd be a bit more concerned than she seems to be.

d.ross_2

It sounds like she is trying to fob you off. If I were you I would still give her details to the police.

hsj2011

That was my thinking. Also even if it wasn't her that sold it me, it was still her eBay account and it was her paypal account that was used to receive money for stolen property.

d.ross_2

hsj2011 wrote: »

That was my thinking. Also even if it wasn't her that sold it me, it was still her eBay account and it was her paypal account that was used to receive money for stolen property.

Exactly. The money most likely went through her bank account also. Or was used to buy other products through paypal. So that would be proceeds of crime.

sarahg1969

Do the police know you've contacted the seller? I wonder if this was an altogether wise idea, given that the matter is under investigation (proceeds of crime?). You may well have tipped off the alleged fraudster.

hsj2011

sarahg1969 wrote: »

Do the police know you've contacted the seller? I wonder if this was an altogether wise idea, given that the matter is under investigation (proceeds of crime?). You may well have tipped off the alleged fraudster.

I know what you're saying but I can't really sit back and do nothing. While I didn't explicitly ask the officer I spoke to, he didn't tell me not to contact the seller. I asked him if there's anything I need to do and he just told me to wait for further contact from Dell.

Also, once this has been reported to eBay, it's likely that the seller would be notified by eBay anyway. I have noticed that the seller hasn't used their ebay account since selling me the laptop, however, I have sent emails to the sellers they've bought stuff off asking if they would mind giving either myself or the police the members details.

go_cat

hsj2011 wrote: »

I had a reply from the seller last night (at 11.59pm). The seller said that the laptop was sold by her ex partner who she now has nothing to do with. She gave me his name but doesn't know where he lives and has basically said it's not her problem.

I don't know if it's just me but if someone told me that my ex had used my eBay account to sell stolen property, I'd be a bit more concerned than she seems to be.

Thats convenient isn't it

Does she not know his family/ friends then that would know where he lived ...

sarahg1969

hsj2011 wrote: »

I know what you're saying but I can't really sit back and do nothing.

In the case of a proceeds of crime situation, that's exactly what you should do. You really should have sought police advice before potentially tipping off the alleged offender and other people as well.

hsj2011

Without meaning to sound like an idiot in all honesty, I don't really care about the police investigation side of it. a) if they didn't want me to contact the seller, they should've said so and b) once the seller has been arrested and sent down, what chance do I have of getting a refund then? Not much, so my only option is to go after the seller before the police get to them.