Buying a gun that was, at one point, stolen

[The Undertoad]

So I found a good S&W revolver at the local gunshop. The finish and handle are beat up. It's in great shape internally, looks like it hasn't been fired. But it was stolen at one point, and the shop owner just recently got it back from the police.

I'm considering the gun, once I learn more about it anyways (details here ). Would you buy a firearm, from a dealer, that you knew at one point in its history was stolen? Is that no longer an issue, or could that come back to haunt me in the future?

 

[BryanP]

I would ask him for documentation explaining the situation, including copies of any police reports about it being stolen and returned, in addition to receipts for your purchase.

 

[Daniel T]

I wouldn't touch it. The government is bad enough with paperwork as it is.

 

[MAClarkWA]

Man, it would half to be a great deal.
It just does not seem worth it to me, after all, I would hate to get this great revolver home, have it for a month or two and have the cops come and take it away for some reason and have no prospect of getting it back. Just a thought.

 

[riverdog]

As long as the price is right and you can get all the paperwork, go for it. LE wouldn't have returned the revolver if there was an issue, but get a copy of all the paperwork anyway.

 

[JohnKSa]

I don't see that it's any different from having a gun that was once stolen from you returned by the police...

Either way you're in possession of a gun that was once stolen. Either way you have the blessing of the cops.

 

[geojap]

So it isn't currently "stolen", like the owner isn't currently looking for the gun, right? It was stolen at one point and the owner recovered it and now it is for sale again?

In that case I say it is perfectly legal. Go for it and keep the paperwork like the others have suggested.

 

[Old Fuff]

If the seller can document that his possession of the gun is legal, and that he is indeed the legal owner, I wouldn't hesitate to buy it if the price was right, and the original serial numbers had not been tampered with. I presume you will have to fill out a #4473 form to buy the gun, and a copy - along with other documentation will prove that you bought the gun legally from its legal owner.

Otherwise I wouldn't touch it.

 

[4v50 Gary]

Depends. Now, if the gun was stolen and sold by the thief to the dealer, of course not.

However, if a stolen gun was recovered by the police and the police was unable to return it to the owner (say the owner died or couldn't be contacted), and then the police sold it to the dealer, then yes, I'd buy it. What's the difference? It went through a law enforcement agency which cleared it for sale.

 

[aguyindallas]

Call the local LEO and have them run the serial # through the NCIC system to see if it flags.

If they show it as stolen and recovered, ask them for any documentation about it.