Someone stole my tires, caught the guy today.

On monday it was about 30 minutes before I was supposed to meet up with a buyer for a set of 4 285/75/17 Nitto Terra Grapplers All-Terrains that I am selling.
I hadn't checked on them in awhile (like 2 months) and when I rolled up the storage door I realized….they weren't there….
A heap of interrogation on my part unwound a web of deception and lies with some employees that had been going on about within the company I work for.
Despite my attempt to find out who was responsible or knew anything, I was still out of tires. I filed a police report later that evening.
While in class that night, I decided to check craigslist and see if SOME-HOW they were on there. Well, SOME-HOW, they were. I thought it may be a coincidence but never the less, set up an appointment to meet the guy at a local gas station.

Now the problem with this situation is I have no paperwork for the tires and the police said because they don't have serial numbers, it would be impossible to prove the tires are mine. But you see the thing is I bought one of the tires separate from the rest and as it turns out, it had a different manufacturing date than the others…it also looks slightly different being that it was used as a spare. I made sure this was noted in the police report.

So 12:15PM today I meet up with the guy and I get a sketchy feeling as I pull up because they have a big white unmarked van. I played the roll of a regular low-baller guy trying to get new set of tires. I told him I was going to check the sidewalls for damage and checked the dates when the tires were made.
3 made in the same year, 4th made in a different year. Bingo. I already knew they looked familiar but I had to check so I could prove it.
Once I verified in person that the tires were indeed mine ( i was impressed with my own capability to hold and hide so much excitement and emotion whilst acting ), he followed me as we made our way to the nearest bank.
On the way to the bank I called 911 and reported the crime in progress, they knew exactly who i was because i had called earlier. A cop was en route and as we pulled in two cop cars came up behind him, detained him, and the questioning began.
I explained to them the situation and all information about this whole case. Because I gave him the specific details of the tire dates (that I had mentioned in my police report the previous night) It was enough to prove that they were mine. Joe tire seller didn't post pictures of the DOT dates in his craigslist ad either and thank God because if he did, I would've looked like a guy who just saw an opportunity. The guy had no idea that the tire dates didn't match, but how could he? He didn't buy the tires. I did. I bought three of them at once, and a 4th separately to complete the set.
It was a bit scary because for a moment I thought due to the lack of paperwork I have for them, these guys might get away with my tires! The cops asked me questions about them skeptically like I'm just trying to say they are mine and he stole them. The fear of seeing these guys drive away with my tires, the tires I recognized just from looking at them, made me almost lose my cool.
BUT
I got them.
Turns out the guy who was selling them bought them from another guy, who bought them from the perpetrator who stole them from me. The guy who stole them claimed he found them near a trash can by the storage unit I had them inside. He knew a couple former employees of the company I work for, who also have access to the storage unit, and may have gotten them from a tip off from one of them.
The guy (and his friend who came with him) selling me the tires is innocent but is unfortunately out whatever he paid for them.
At the end he understood what had happened and knew he was just plain screwed. He didn't have any hard feelings or resent toward me (it seemed) but I told him I had neither of those toward him and that I am truly sorry this happened to him.
Cops told me to load 'em up and I was done.

WOOOO!

It's crazy to think that they had been stolen from me at least on or around January 7th and for 63 days these tires were gone and for sale somewhere else. By some MIRACLE they did not sell. He was also pricing them much higher than I was (which may be part of the reason) but still… Thank. God.


SO,
I had a guy coming to pick them up on monday until i realized I didn't have tires to sell. Unfortunately he was visiting town and isn't here anymore so I lost my buyer.
Anyone still want these?
NEVER MIND THEY ARE SOLD NOW

Please see first page of this thread for pics and more info:
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/wh...-4-new-nitto-terra-grapplers-285-75-17-a.html


Here's a pic I snapped of the action today:



And a pic I snapped of pure, sweet victory, right before I left:





Special thanks to Matt Moghaddam (THE_TRAVELER) for helping me catch the perps!

 

dang..

 

That "evidence" sounds really thin to me. I shudder to think that's all it takes these days.

I'm glad you got your tires back though, if they really are your tires.

 

Are you serious?

Look I can't go into complete detail about everything I told the cops because I told them a lot to prove my story. I made a for sale thread 2 months ago, I have DETAILED pictures of the tires and they PERFECTLY match the ones I had today. There is NO coincidence here. I'll even take new pictures of the tires for you if you don't believe me.
The guy who I met to buy my tires, bought them from another guy, who gave the cops the name and number of the guy who originally stole them from me.
That man is somebody we know and can prove he stole them.

Here's another thing for you. No one, not the guy who stole them, or the guy who was selling them to me, knew about the different dates.
Prove that shit.
I said BEFORE HAND what the exact dates on all 4 of the tires would be. I even pointed out which one would be different. There were no pictures on Craigslist that showed the DOT dates either.
Not even psychics can do that shit man. Im very lucky because If the dates did match but I did recognize them, I wouldn't have gotten back my tires.

I find it insulting that you, who do not know me, think I would come up with some scheme to take another dude's tires, that I have the balls to involve the police on a fake story in attempt to successfully steal from someone else.

Karma dude. Karma. I hope you know how it feels someday.

 

Really? I'm trying to think of something that conveys how stupid of a reply this is without being a total prick. I have nothing.. Good job.

 

Justice feels amazing man. Amazing. I feel horrible that someone else lost here but in the end it's either I take the loss or he does, and why should I if they are MY tires?

Glad to hear your story and glad to hear a criminal got what he deserved!

 

OP glad to see justice was served. I have a similar story to yours for a set of wheels. So happy when I got them back. Nice work!

 

Oh and one more thing I might add,
The cops were having trouble deciding what to do because as you said the "evidence" was really thin. They said they would probably just take the tires back to the police station until it could get sorted out by a detective.
I gladly agreed and told them I have no problem with that because I am 100% positive I can prove those tires are mine and the detective will be able to as well.
Once they were about to leave and I helped them load the tires into their cop cars, the seller got a hold of the guy who stole them from me and sold them to him. Once the cops talked to him they quickly figured out that he was full of shit and everything he said about where he "found them" matched up to my information on where I stored them. That's when they told me, we got it figured out man, go ahead and take them.

 

If you had the dates of the tires in the police report it's pretty air tight that they are your tires.

But if you just knew it would be 3 on 1 day and 1 on another day it is pretty flimsy tbh. Not sure why your taking it so personally. It wasn't really clear in the op. Like you said he doesn't know you.


Anyway's glad to hear you got them back.

 

This was what I was pointing out, and I didn't mean to imply anything about the OP, just the state of our justice system.

 

Good work, you got your property back but dont expect anything to happen in court if you go that route.
Lesson learned-dont trust anybody and keep your cool around the five O and they will be more likely to help you out.
Good luck with sale.

 

Dude I hate all the freakin bullcrap in court with this and that and blah,blah, blah...anyway great freakin job OP I woulda given them back to ya in a heartbeat bro (mostly cause I would not want to load 4 dam tires in my rig) anyway great job. Hopefully one day, the original guy that stole them, will get justice served to him. Hopefully it's by some dude name Bubba and it comes in the form of tubesteak right in the A%$. Good job!!!!

 

YOU, are the Batman....

 

Nice! I was super bummed for you when I saw your post that they had been stolen. Hopefully you can find a buyer because those are sweet tires.

I sort of went through this recently myself and it ended up working out. In my situation I sold the guy a set of tires but they had rims he didn't want/need, so we agreed he would call me up once they were dismounted. He ended posting them on craigslist himself and was trying to sell them, but I saw them before he could. After some heated phone calls and texts he finally agreed to return them. I was in the wrong for letting them out of my sight, but I'm a trusting guy, not anymore though.

 

So where are you storing the tires these days.

J/k nice job. If I had bought them to find out they were stolen I'd be pissed so it seems to me seller knew more than he let on and was just glad to pawn all the blame off on his friend.

Or maybe it's just that I can't trust anyone in a sketchy white van...

 

glad they got caught. i hate people who steal!

 

Don't feel horrible. I'd bet money dude who had your tires KNEW he was buying hot tires. Why would he buy them just to resell? Doesn't make sense.

I fucking hate thieves.

 

I am really low on cash. I hate to go any lower but seriously can someone buy these? I will drop $50 more. :sulk:

$650. Take them.

 

Awesome! I hate thieves. You had better composer than me. I would have chewed a hole through both of them. Take a good look at these eyes, because I'm gonna tear your fucking heart out you fat fucks. Great job though. Haha. Just reading your story I get fumed thinking about that happening to me, with any item I own.

 

Good show!