Resale of Military Equipment- Legality?

[Exmasonite]

Hey all...

Had a question for you. My brother pointed the following post out on a BBS i frequent. He served in the Army (still in Reserves, actually) and thought it was a little suspect. It was in a "For Sale" forum:

This is a genuine issue US military parka GORE TEX in woodland camo. Issued, unused. Theses are the best parka's ever made. 100% waterproof. Cost the goverment over $300. $69 shipped OBO. Size large/short. paypal okay

This is illegal, isn't it? Or immoral at the very least.

I had reported the post to the administrator and he said no law was being broken.

I did some CURSORY research and figured it migh fall under Uniform Code of Military Justice, Subchapter X, Section 908, Article 108:
"908. ART. 108. MILITARY PROPERTY OF UNITED STATES-LOSS, DAMAGE, DESTRUCTION, OR WRONGFUL DISPOSITION

Any person subject to this chapter who, without proper authority--

(1) sells or otherwise disposes of;

(2) willfully ore through neglect damages, destroys, or loses; or

(3) willfully or through neglect suffers to be lost, damaged, sold, or wrongfully disposed of; any military property of the United States, shall be punished as a court-martial may direct."


Am I totally off base on this? Does the army allow some equipment "out" like this? My bro said they were pretty strict on getting everything back that he'd brought over (to Iraq) but that there were gaps in the system.

Anyways, thanks for the help guys.

 

[everallm]

Neither illegal or immoral assuming not stolen from Uncle Sam or others.

This could be manufacturers seconds, over run inventory, surplus from Uncle Sam, "look a like" etc.

Now if this was to read

This is a genuine issue US military M4 rifle in woodland camo. Issued, unused. Theses are the best rifles ever made. 100% waterproof. Cost the goverment over $900. $69 shipped OBO. Size short. paypal okay

Then that would be

A. Illegal
B. Tempting
C. Inaccurate (best rifle ever made..... )

 

[Mortonspoint]

Yes, the military sell surplus stuff all the time. To get an idea of what is available go here (http://www.govliquidation.com/index.html) and see for yourself. I have bought many items from DRMO facilities and some really good deal can be found on stuff in new condition.

 

[Surefire444]

It really depends on how it was obtained. If the seller is selling his issued equipment, (and it's not something you keep after discharge), then yes it is. If it's something that was surplussed from the govt., then no.

I'm not too far from Ft. Leonard Wood, and our AN surplus stores are awash in short/small nearly new uniform items. When I asked why so many in that size, an owner indicated that they were from female drop-outs of boot camp.

 

[bakerj]

A friend of mine inheirited a garage full of military surplus a few years back when his father in-law passed away. FIL used to be a vendor at Gunshows.
The lot included 6-7 brand new Interceptor vests with new SAPI plates.

He put a couple on Ebay and the winning bidders were a couple of guys from the DOD who showed up at his house and asked him to turn over all of the vests saying they were stolen.

My friend didn't turn them over but instead was able to produce reciepts that his father in-law had kept showing that he had actually purchased them somewhere.

 

[Mortonspoint]

Yes, the military sell surplus stuff all the time and so can others. To get an idea of what is available go here (http://www.govliquidation.com/index.html) and see for yourself. I have bought many items from DRMO facilities and some really good deal can be found on stuff in new condition.

 

[xd45gaper]

id buy it thats a good deal those parkas are NICE lol not warm but great rainwear!!

he could have purchased it from a DRMO(Defense, Reutalization, and Marketing Office) we dump tons of tools, office furniture and other items at DRMO that will be resold to the public, I could put a bid on a box of tools win it then turn around and sell a Snap On Screwdriver gently(LOL) used for 30$ but the Navy might have paid 50$ for it.

They sell EVERYTHING at DRMO. This is why we are putting the old F14's in woodchippers so other countries cannot get ahold of the technology. ive seen everything from empty wood crates to fire trucks to a body of an S3 Viking at ours. I heard a sea story once a guy purchased 3 sealable containers for around 100$ at a DRMO and when he got home and opened them up they all had a Fiberoptic borescope in them which he turned around and sold for 100k a piece lol to some aircraft company.

or he could have purchased it from an Army Navy store on the cheap and is resealing it?

 

[anthony-white]

Every time a soldier arrives at a new duty station he/she is issued equipment.
It is common for a servicemember to acquire/buy their own for turn in when they leave that duty station and save the issued one in the package. Most likely this is what happened, nothing wrong with clothing style stuff like that. I would stay away from issue (point blank) body armor and sapi plates; things of that nature.

 

[Neo-Luddite]

If you suspect the item was stolen, then you're right to have moral issues with buying it. That said, military surplus enters the open market through many channels--most legitimate, but yes some questionable. And as stated, watch for counterfit gear that looks good but is often made in (red) China to lower standards. They have got to the point where they can make immitation surplus items cheaper than the genuine article. Buyer beware.

 

[Exmasonite]

thanks for all the info guys... guess i probably jumped the gun on this one.

 

[41magsnub]

If those goretex jackets were the same ones I had when I was in the Army then I'd stay away from them. Pretty marginal stuff really.. easy to tear, the coating would wear off quickly. Not to mention they are noisy!

As far as legality.. every uniform store on base (forget the exact name anymore) had them with no differences of any kind including markings from the issue ones. Brigade quartermaster has (or had) them as well. No way to tell if they were stolen or not, probably not.