What would you do if...you bought a doll that had been stolen?

This is such a tough question, and I suppose only being in that situation could tell what I would do, but as it is now, as I'm sitting comfortably in my chair at home with no worries about things like these, I would say I'd give it back if the previous owner wanted it back. However, poor student as I am, I'd really really hope for a reward or something that could compensate me a little, because the dolls are expensive, and I've been saving up a long time.... I keep thinking of what I would do if I had dolls stolen and then found by another who wanted to give it back...

 

I would definitely contact the owner and get their dolly back to them. I would try my best to get my money back from the thief but seeing how they are thieves, it would be 99.9% impossible. I would take the hit with the money and pray for some type of reward. Otherwise it is very expensive good karma lol.

 

I would probably contact the seller at first, to see if I could have a discussion with them as to the dolls origins, and then also link them to the person who has provided evidence that the doll I had just bought is their own doll. If they deny, I might try to raise it to an Ebay dispute (if that's possible!) and if worst comes to worst and they end up buggering off before I can get my money back and give the person their doll, I would just give the person back their doll, regardless of if I am out of money or not.

 

If I found out the doll was stolen and I knew who the owner was, there's no question I would contact the real owner and arrange for them to reunite with their doll. As for the seller I'd handle them somehow to get my money back, I imagine I could involve the authorities or work out something with Paypal. I'd feel too much guilt hanging on to the doll even if I really loved it. It would be like keeping a pet you adopted from the pound only to learn it was someone else's pet before it got picked up and they've been worried sick over what happened to the pet. Too much emotion is involved to walk away and say "too bad."

 

I'd send it back to the owner it's not good to own something that could easily get you in trouble.

 

I would definitely contact the owner, because keeping something that was stolen is wrong. Even if I DID decide to keep it, it would never really be MY doll. Someone else out there is really upset, and it would be the same as stealing the doll myself.
I would try to find a way to get my money back too, since even second-hand bjds aren't cheap, and the seller would need to face the consequences for what they did.

 

I would be hurting so much if that will happen to me because i know if I'm going to buy another doll, the money i will be spending is super hard earned.
But the doll will have to go back to its rightful owner. ( I will just have to deal with the person who sold it to me)

 

I would try my hardest to find the owner, contact them, and arrange something, if it's sold somewhere like ebay, or here, I'd report them to the mods with proof etc, because this person needs to be outed as a thief.

 

Give it back of course, no question! But instead of trying to wring money out of the victim, I would demand the seller give me money back! After all they are the one who swindled me out of it!

 

I'd get in contact with the rightful owner and jointly work together to target the thief. I would obviously want to get back the money I'd spent on the doll but that would be between me and the seller, I wouldn't ask or expect the rightful owner to give me a reward or pay me to get their property back.

 

I just saw on the news a man who had 2 paintings hanging in his kitchen just found out they were stolen about 35 years ago. He bought them at a flea market.
He lives and bought them in Italy. Like in TX the law says if you bought in good faith...The property becomes yours.
to further how it works...
The courts allow new owner position of the property and the theif, if identified, is liable for any/all moneys owed to the original owner.
BTW. paintings are now worth 50 MILLION collectively!!!

Do NOT move to Italy Zek.!

ALSO:
Receiving stolen property and*possession of stolen property*are treated as separate offenses in some jurisdictions. The distinguishing element is when the person knew that the property was stolen. If the person knew that the property was stolen at the time he received it, the crime is receiving stolen property. If the person did not know the property was stolen at the time she received it but found out after receiving possession, the crime is possession of stolen property.

As demonstrated US states have different state laws.
Different Countries have different laws.

In my opinion, for what it is, this is NOT an issue of legality but more of a morale question.

For me, I'd give it back.
Here's why.
I'd be more pissed off if someone KNEW they had my doll and it vas stolen. More mad at them than the person who stole it. THEN that person actually crosses over into receiving stolen property. Which is a more sever crime for that person.

 

Oh geez... Since it takes like a year or more for me to save up for dolls (I mean like 200$ dolls) I'd definitely still contact the owner and see if they still wanted it, (Since sometimes the negative feelings attached to the doll may make them not even want them back, sadly) And if they did, I'd have to ask for something in return. I mean like literally just something. I couldn't live with myself wasting a year to save up for a doll just to give it away. But then again like if I had a doll stolen I wouldn't have the money to pay them so it'd wreck me. I guess it depends on the situation..? Like I guess I'd just hope there was a reward or ask for like a faceup commission or something

 

I would contact the original owner and give them back the doll. Then I would curl up into a little ball and cry and cry and cry. This happened to me when I used to collect rare comics. It was very very sad for me to lose so much money, but I can't stand it when I know I'm unintentionally hurting someone. The comic wasn't so bad because I still got to handle and read it. I think it would feel much worse with a doll. All those hope and dreams for it down the rube.

 

This is a horrible thing to even think about!

I am a very moral person and not just because I feel guilty about doing bad things, but because I genuinely enjoy doing good things like stopping to help random strangers.

Legal or not, I think it would be unethical to keep the doll, but I also have financial responsibilities to a family.

I can't think of any way this turns out other than lose lose. If I could recoup my money through PayPal or something, it would be a no-brainer but if we're talking about a really expensive doll, all I see is a whole lot of tears no matter what decision I made. I'm sad just thinking about it.

I'm honestly not sure what I would actually DO. Selling the doll back to the owner would be the best option... I would still feel bad... Probably couldn't accept full price... And then I would feel bad for losing money for my family...

It's possible I would dally over a decision and keep the doll for a few months... maybe even a year... and by that stage my guilt would probably overwhelm me to the point of sending her back, reassured with the knowledge that I was able to experience her and enjoy her for a while at least. If I could keep her until I had saved the money to replace her, I would be pretty happy.

 

A lot of people mentioned contacting the authorities. To be honest this never even crossed my mind. Before reading this thread I probably would have contacted the original owner and arranged to ship the doll back to them after they provide enough proof that the doll was theirs. Deep inside I would want compensation but I would feel bad asking for it (afterall, it's not really their fault...), so at most I'd probably just ask for them to compensate me shipping (I think that's fair right?! Especially if they're overseas) and hope they will give me some kind of reward (a dress? a wig? $20? something?). I'd take the hit on the cost of the doll and probably never buy 2nd hand again.

After reading this I guess I'd file a police report and try to get my money back. Though I really hate things that are a huge hassle so if the doll wasn't even that much money to begin with, I think I'd probably just take the lost and grumble about the experience to my friends. I don't think I could keep the doll though unless the owner said they didn't want it anymore. I would feel too badly over it. Even if the owner didn't want it anymore I don't know if I'd want it. But I would feel bad reselling it. At that point I don't know what I'd do with it.... mod experiments?

I can totally understand anyone who would ask for compensation back for the doll though, as long as they're not making it sound like a ransom. These dolls are a lot of money afterall. I read the first two pages of posts on here and there seemed to have been a lot of judgement and hate on those who said they would want some form of money back. Not everyone knows they can file a police report or the laws surrounding possessing stolen goods. I think its natural to want something back in return for the doll or to even want to just keep the doll, afterall the purchase was honest on your part and that's a lot of money down the drain otherwise.