The person that stole my SV650S in 2008...

[Mr Droo]

My SV650S I bought in 2005 off the showroom floor was stolen in 2008 (just 2 days after putting a $250 seat and $400 Dale Walker Holeshot exhaust on it). Yup, I rode it approximately 20 miles with those items on it. As a whole, the bike had ~19,xxx miles on it.

Anywho, the local PD never recovered the bike on their own. A police department in Georgia and in Florida contacted my local PD two years ago indicating a frame and an engine (separated between the two states) were recovered, as they were reported stolen back in 2008. They were from my SV. Poor bike. Hacked and disseminated throughout the U.S. and probably overseas as well.

So, a Cuyahoga County Prosecutor (Cleveland, for you out of town folks) calls me and says the guy they charged was going to Court yesterday (7/11/12) for sentencing. He took a plea bargain. His Theft (F-5) offense was amended to a Petty Theft (M-1). In exchange for the amended offense, he admitted he and his friends stole the bike and gave the prosecutor the names of his friends and all the people's names he sold to. He admitted selling most of the major/main parts on craigslist in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Kentucky. He admitted selling all the rest of the fittings and misc. parts on Ebay CONUS and abroad. The guy that bought the frame in 2009 was trying to have it registered in Georgia and was arrested at the DMV/BMV because the frame was reported stolen. He indicated in his statements to the police he didn't know it was stolen. The VIN number was left completely intact. The guy that bought the engine was attempting to have his frankenbike inspected and the motor was reported stolen. His statements to the police indicate he bought the frankenbike already put together from a local motorcycle shop that was unaffiliated by any major motorcycle manufacturer. The shop says they bought the bike "straight cash money" from an out of state gentleman and nothing on the bike (including the motor) showed it was stolen or flagged. Yes, that gentleman used a fictitious name on the bill of sale and title.

I received a call late yesterday afternoon from the same prosecutor telling me the original guy that orchestrated the theft was sentenced to two years probation, fines, and a suspended 90-day county jail sentence.... The judge didn't even order an apology letter. Lame.


All my hard work was apparently worth that little. That bike was, until now, the first bike I bought brand new. I bought it as a gift to myself for graduating college.
I'll post pics of the SV the day before it was stolen if anyone wants to see it.

K, 'yall. Be wary of buying parts you can't verify where they came from.

 

[lil charlie]

Sorry that you got kicked when you were down. Sadly the court system doesnt care about you and I unless we are the offenders. Budgets are tight and jails are over populated so its cheeper to slap them on the wrist and send them away than it is to find a place to house them so non-violent crimes get pled down.

 

[880jedi]

I know it's no comfort, but at least you got all of the details on what when down. Most folks don't get any details other than, "I don't know".

 

[raydog]

Thank you for taking the time to tell your story, I, too, lost a beautiful Kawasaki KZ1000, uninsured, to low lifes. We just have to never let our guard down, the vultures seem to always be circling! Raydog

 

[fallenarch]

I am amazed that the prosecuter was decent enough to update you. Unfortunately the courts see a vehicle as an inanimate object with no value other than what it's insured for. The time and effort we put into our babies is basically up for grabs everytime we leave her alone.

 

[Wag]

That's a horrible story.

I just bought a fully intact Busa except for the blown motor. I just need the plastics off of it so it suits me just fine. However, before I bought it, I did a ton of checking to ensure that the bike was not reported stolen. The guy had the title and the VIN on the title matches the VIN on the frame. A major plus. He didn't have the key, however. Major red flag. Everything I checked, however, came up clear so I feel like I'm good to go.

Part of the problem, though, is that you can't trace anything beyond the frame and the engine. If you buy a set of plastics, for example, there is no way to know if they came from a stolen bike. It can be tough out there.

--Wag--

 

[Blanca BusaLess]

So do we know now the names and Addresses of these kind folks

 

[skydivr]

I was gonna say, now you know the full name and address of the person(s) that stole it, and a confession on top of it......

 

[Rothman]

If anybody ever steals my bike, I hope that they crash and die in the most horrible manner possible (ie. bursting into flames while pinned to a tree by the bike). It would probably be better something like that happens than me finding them.

 

[mynewride]

actually you can take him to civil court and get awarded monies. the state will garnish his wages..if he ever works, and hand it over to you. takes time, but it could be worth at least looking into. i have had 2 quads stolen within 2 years of each other. the first was my brothers and mine(both banshee's. my coil wire was pulled so they couldnt get far with it)...we (not the police...almost got arrested for impeding an investigation) recovered them and found the guilty parties. they walked, but he was sadly arrested for raping a 14 year old girl. when he was sentanced to prison (for the rape and third ding) he did some work and i recieved like 2 checks for about 50 bucks from the state. if he ever works again he will have to pay me via the state. it was part of a settlement from when he pleaded guilty to the theft of our quads and a car. sadly he put straight 87 oct gas in my brothers beautiful banshee and killed it about 15 min later. he was like 18 or 19.

he went to the same school as me. H was arrested for doing like 100k in damages to our high school, then breaking into the skating rink and stealing 5k worth of albums. he was 16 when he did that stuff so he never saw jail time. this kid needs to be wiped from the planet.

my other quad was a brand new 2006 suzuki ltz 400. i had just put like 800 worth of nerf bars and wheels and other parts. it was never recovered and i know nothing about it.

 

[BUSA CRUSEN]

Isn't that grand theft auto and a felony? And whatever happened to chopping off limbs for stealing stuff? I think that would be a better deterrent than giving out probation!

 

[Mr Droo]

The guy plead down from Theft (F-5) to Petty Theft (M-1) due to his "cooperation" in giving up the names and addresses of those individuals he sold parts to. Yup, when the criminal tells on others, he gets less of a punishment.

Nope, I don't have the names or addresses of the individuals involved. Even if I did, I don't see any reasonable recourse at this point, because the guy is now on probation and owes a ton of fines. Ya can't squeeze blood out of a turnip, no matter how hard you squeeze.

 

[RYC1966]

a few people have had stolen bikes as parts or whole returned in the last few months...there were a few containters found stuffed with bikes / cars...it is good to see the bad guys pay and an owner get their bike back...not just cle...parma was involved among other places.

 

[chrisjp]

i am sorry drew... but yes it helps some when you know at least they are doing there job...unlike me here having to push to get any results

 

[Busa Rookie]

i don't think it's grand theft unless valued over 10k?

 

[Mr Droo]

I was living in Berea at the time... kinda close to Parma(dale)

 

[Wag]

What you can do is file a civil suit against him in small claims court. When you get a judgment against him, you can garnish wages, have the sheriff collect for you or at the very least, his credit will be screwed for the next 10 years or so.

--Wag--

 

[jacks996]

That sucks all he got was probation, sue him in small claims court now. You can get a 5k judgement against him. I doubt he will even show up.