To Catch A Thief - the tale of the missing BSA Goldstar SE Union Jack

[cavedweller]

This is a story being told as not only lessons learned but as an education tool for people who buy and sell airguns.
The story begins when AGN member Cannonball bought a BSA Goldstar SE Union Jack Edition. Cannonball made some cool and unique improvements to this Goldstar, a shrouded barrel and a LARGE breech bolt round knob for ease of cocking the gun. Time passed and Cannonball sold the air rifle to another AGN member, Kdog who eventually sold it to me, Cavedweller, and i paid via Paypal. The gun was shipped to me via usps around 22 August of 2022 aprox. That airgun went missing in transit and never made it to me. Kdog being straight up, refunded me asap when we determined it was a loss. I never gave up wanting the Union Jack and sure enough 11 almost 12 months later it popped up on EBAY. Although the seller tried to be sly and only post fuzzy pics of one side of the gun, the side with no ser#, the two mods made by Cannonball made it pretty obvious that this "might" be the same gun. Partly because I'm stubborn, I went ahead and bought the Union Jack off Ebay using Paypal. It arrived a few days later and low and behold, the serial Number matched the serial Number of the stolen Union Jack. We are working to get the seller to reimburse via a eBay claim and PayPal claim... the seller has until 18 August to respond. We shall see. Lessons learned - always record the serial number of you airguns and always document where you bought them and to whom you sold them. Don't be afraid to require signatures on shipping and appropriate insurance - just in case.

 

[Sqwirl57]

Probably shouldn't have reported buying a stolen gun (airgun or not) to PayPal. They may doink you pretty good. I would get any funds that you have in your PayPal account transferred out of there immediately.

Aside from that, good for you man. Congrats on getting your gun back and best of luck getting your money back!

 

[trlrman]

YA'LL HANG his ARSE !!!!

 

[Peashooter]

I hope everyone get what they deserve.
The date of the original crime,,,,,,, very familiar to me.

 

[jarmstrong]

any law enforcement? you have the return address and name from the shipping label
It was stolen from the USPS system, call the cops

Glad ya found THE gun, it is a great start

 

[hawkeye69]

You have inspired me to record the serial numbers of my guns. Something, previous to this post, that did not occur to me.

 

[Motorhead]

What a story !!

 

[beerthief]

ME too SS # and Pictures now in the file in the safe .

 

[IMADMAN]

You have inspired me to record the serial numbers of my guns. Something, previous to this post, that did not occur to me.

I just recently documented all my AG’s and PB’s. Pictures, info…..ect. Some are one offs and irreplaceable. Mostly did it for future reference when I leave this earth, so my family doesn’t have to stress
When it come time to do something with them.

 

[Ranchibi]

OMG! I am so glad you found it on ebay and got it in hand paying for it. I sure hope ebay sees the truth in this and that Kdog gets compensated! Fingers crossed and great work on your part!

 

[Long_Gun_Dallas]

Would definitely report it to the pertinent law enforcement agencies.

 

[baranjhn]

I saw that rifle on eBay too and I was tempted. I just got hinky vibes from the listing. The seller is not know for his airgun listing and that rifle is out of the norm for non airgunners.

Anyway, I’m glad you got it back and it worked out. Were any police reports made or Postal Inspectors informed of the whole ordeal?

+1 on keeping serials numbers on hand. I keep an xcel spreadsheet with all that info going back 10 years.

 

[WorriedMan]

You have inspired me to record the serial numbers of my guns. Something, previous to this post, that did not occur to me.

Hawk,
Took three pics of each gun (left, right and serial number close-up), then downloaded to computer and laptop. WM

 

[cavedweller]

I saw that rifle on eBay too and I was tempted. I just got hinky vibes from the listing. The seller is not know for his airgun listing and that rifle is out of the norm for non airgunners.

Anyway, I’m glad you got it back and it worked out. Were any police reports made or Postal Inspectors informed of the whole ordeal?

+1 on keeping serials numbers on hand. I keep an xcel spreadsheet with all that info going back 10 years.

At this point we are just waiting for Ebay and Paypal's decision so that should happen around 18 Aug.

 

[Treefrog]

Great thread, great results!

Hoping they bust his chops!

J~

 

[Deleted member 50932]

Wow! That’s an incredible story, I hope this person gets exactly what they deserve!!

 

[Trucker3573]

Definitely subscribing to this for the outcome. Hate thieves. Good luck.

 

[L.Leon]

You have inspired me to record the serial numbers of my guns. Something, previous to this post, that did not occur to me.

Me too and @cavedweller, darn good piece of detective work on your part. Kudos to you… Love the outcome, what a good ending.

 

[7Green]

Just catching up on this thread. It was stolen August of 2022 and recovered this year in August of 2023? Maybe I missed it, but the most you may be able to get right now is possession of stolen property. Proving he/she actually stole it and transferred it across state lines can be rather difficult unless the original owner, you, or the shipping service had camera footage of the theft that showed the suspect committing the theft. Bear in mind data is also only typically kept for finite amount of time.

An agency could possibly write a warrant to ebay to identify the seller, but the issue would still be did he/she knowingly sell you a stolen gun.

A typical answer the perp may provide to law enforcement is I purchased it off Joe with no known last name, address, or phone number.

I wish it wasn't this way, but that is the world we live in now.

 

[Peashooter]

" A typical answer "
That excuse here use to be " i bought it from someone at a bar "
Though i still dont think it absolve you from possessing / selling stolen / illegal goods, only mean you dont want to rat someone out, which in some circles at least is highly frowned upon.