HELP! Someone stole my entire video game collection..sold to local owned store??

[dcfjsj]

HELP! Someone stole my entire video game collection..sold to local owned store??

When I went to look for something in the attic, I almost died when I found 14 Rubbermaid containers missing I estimated my collection to be worth Over 10k as I have been collecting games for 25 years. 

I found out it was a family member and they only gave him 300$ cash. What do you even do?

 I just got back from living out of state and went to pick up my collection from my parents house to take it to my apartment where I planed on making a floor to ceiling shelf to display it all and run wires to every system into a sound system and HDTV. 

Every system every box gone. Hundreds even Thousands  of hours hunting flee markets, garage sales, the saddest thing is all that is left is a box with a sealed copy of Mario 3 that my girlfriend opened to play (one of the reasons I love her but that's a whole other story and I can do is laugh and it is not funny).  

Here's the kicker!

Okay I'm freaking out bit the worst part is it was 2 years ago when this happened freaked out but what to do argh'nn!!!! 

Ahha but I was smart when I was a lad and made a binder filled with the name and codes of every game I owned and yes this I still have it is the "Ultimate Game Collection" by DCFJSJ wow I was 7 years old when I type this up on a "TI with printer in the box owned by my dad a psychologist" and that's gone too. ( single tear )

So I will bring this magical binder to their main building and offer them 300$ and see what they say. My worry is they say no or it's all gone. 

I mean it was a Sega Genesis I got for Christmas when I was 9 box complete you can't put a price on that can you? 

Even so I will update when I figure this out.

What would you do? ( besides murder death kill ) 

FML

Regards Sincerely,

DCFJSJ

[theflea]

Hopefully the store owner will be understanding and give everything back for the $300. if it just happened and not a lot of time pasted between your "family member" selling the stuff. Then maybe you can get most of it back.

Sorry to hear this, your family member needs to give you that $300 and come with you to try and get your stuff back. But again if he sold it off months ago your pretty much screwed.
i don't know if its your brother, dad, uncle or other did this to you but shame on them for not asking you about it before selling it all.

good luck man.

[jcalder8]

That really sucks but since it was 2 years ago I wouldn't even bother trying to go to the store. I would contact the police and my insurance company so I can at least get the monetary value back.

[turf]

If it was your folks that sold them, I think your out of luck.  If it was at your parents house, you can't claim it on the homeowners insurance.  It won't be looked at as stolen.  If it was someone that didn't live in that house, claim away.  That is a ton to try to recover.  But, be careful.  The insurance company may want a police report.  You have to decide how bad you want these games back.

[jcalder8]

If it was your folks that sold them, I think your out of luck.  If it was at your parents house, you can't claim it on the homeowners insurance.  It won't be looked at as stolen.  If it was someone that didn't live in that house, claim away.  That is a ton to try to recover.  But, be careful.  The insurance company may want a police report.  You have to decide how bad you want these games back.

Since he said that it was a family member I figured that it wasn't someone who was living in the house.

[libernullmal]

insurance wise, if you have your collection on the website and you taken a pictures and have that book you were talking about. You pretty much have it made insurance wise.. Other than that hope you have good evidence and good hearted person that bought your stuff.

[gecko101]

I would (instead of getting insurance involved) fine your family. For MUCH more than $300 dollars, but I don't know about 10k.

[disgaeniac]

But, be careful.  The insurance company may want a police report.  You have to decide how bad you want these games back.

I agree.

I've had similar instances/decisions to make...

As an amputee - I'm in  chronic & severe pain (both physical and "phantom") at the amputation site.

I'm on (and probably always will be) a legal, doctor-prescribed (and no, I don't exceed the amounts that I should, crush them up, snort/shoot the pills, and/or sell them) "pain-management" regimen of (what would be to most) quite high doses of Oxycodone.

Once, on a trip to my sister's house...I'd carelessly left them out in the open (in my defense, at that time, I had no reason *not* to) -and- my brother-in-law *"swiped"* about 75% (from about a 2 week supply).

This left me in a conflicted (and *UNCOMFORTABLE*) spot.

My options were to either:

A).  Suffer through the significant reduction until I was able to get it re-filled, or

B).  File a police report (against my brother-in-law), give a copy of it to my Dr, and immediately get back the "lost" pills.

I chose "A".

Not out of any love for my brother-in-law, *BUT*; looking at the big picture...it would have hurt my sister and her (then) newborn baby girl (my adorable, little niece:) in a BIG way to have him in jail (or even better - in a rehab)...either way...he'd have been unable to continue working & supporting them in this time period where they so very obviously *needed* him working/earning/contributing, etc.

Actually, in all honesty, there was *kinda'* a "B.5" option (that simply required a call to people that I'd long-since distanced myself from) to 'provide' me with..."temporary substitutes"...but that's certainly not something that I'd encourage anyone else to do...but...the original point of Turf's of: "you have to decide how badly you want these games back?! - is definitely an important & valid consideration when anything like this involves family...

[varkias]

Sorry to hear about your collection being stolen, but this post has a lot of red flags me thinks...

[burningdoom]

In California, they can only take consoles and handhelds with serial number still on them. Then they have to file a pawn slip with those serial numbers. And that's just for this sort of thing, that way if the items were stolen, they can be tracked. The games, you still would have been screwed on.

At least for the sake of the consoles and handhelds, I'd see what the laws are in your state concerning that.

[soera]

If its really been 2 years, you are going to be out of luck on everything. I guarantee most everything is gone. Ive had my shit sold out from under me twice. You just gotta move on and make the next attempt better than the last.

[dcfjsj]

Well so far I have scoured my parents house for anything video game collection, I will post some pictures. 

I wish you would have said what red flags anyways. Thanks for everyone's input I am whooped today. I will keep updating this post but the rents said no to the Insurence hike.

10k? hmm your right but I played every game I owned that's the value to me however if anyone has every playstation 1&2 demo disc let me know I'm starting over again.

 Argh I can not believe this happens. My house got robbed out west had some great PS3 stuff and got the check and moved back and now this shight. 

Regards,

DCFJSJ

[jcalder8]

Well so far I have scoured my parents house for anything video game collection, I will post some pictures.

I wish you would have said what red flags anyways. Thanks for everyone's input I am whooped today. I will keep updating this post but the rents said no to the Insurence hike.

10k? hmm your right but I played every game I owned that's the value to me however if anyone has every playstation 1&2 demo disc let me know I'm starting over again.

 Argh I can not believe this happens. My house got robbed out west had some great PS3 stuff and got the check and moved back and now this shight.

Regards,

DCFJSJ

Seriously? Your parents don't care about your stuff?

You should check with your own insurance to see if they will cover it.

[disgaeniac]

I wish you would have said what red flags anyways.

Yeah - I didn't get that, either...

[ko1ru]

There are a few things you have to consider when deciding what to do in this situation.

1.  If you're going to pursue legal action, you have to remember that a considerable amount of time (two years?) has passed since the theft/selling of items.  Based on laws regarding theft in your state/country, too much time may have passed for anything to hold up legally.  Same goes with insurance claims.  For example, there's not much the law could do for me if I reported the theft of a vehicle several years after the fact, whether I knew it occurred at the time or not.  And if I reported a vehicle accident several months after the incident, there's nothing that can be done for me.

2.  Just who exactly took your collection and why. 
     A.  For instance (and I'm not saying this is the case for you, just an example), if it was your dad or mom that took your collection and sold it, if they have probable cause for the selling of your items (especially since it was in their home), then there's nothing that can be done.  Say you owed your dad a chunk of change, you agreed to pay him back in a certain amount of time, but didn't, he can rightfully take your property and try to sell it for at least a portion of what you owe him, if not the entire amount owed.  Especially if you had a written agreement, and especially if it was a collateral loan.
     B.  If it were a shitbag cousin, brother, etc., nabbing your collection and selling it for drugs or whatever, I'd pay them back with a bit of revenge.  Steal the stereo system out of their car, their flat-screen TV or their game system/s for start-up capital on your new collection.  A tit for tat, an eye for an eye, etc.  Nothing like a good old dose of revenge - not to solve your problem - but to at least make you feel a little bit better.    Or your could just kill them.  *shrug*  j/k

If I were you, though, I'd make a few rounds to all the shops in your area and see if you could at least recover a few of your items, even if you have to buy them back.  Even after all this time, maybe a few things are bound to still be there?