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SCHENECTADY
Stolen items law hits snag
Stores don’t report used-goods sales
BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter

    A city law aimed at helping police find stolen goods has hit a snag: many businesses are quietly ignoring it.
    In Schenectady, there’s two ways to sell used goods. A company can ask for identifi cation, carefully write out a description of the item and tell the police, who will check to see if it was reported stolen.
    Or they can simply sell the item and not tell anyone.
    The second choice is proving more popular.
    As the price of gold has gone up, more and more businesses have started buying used jewelry, and they’re not the typical pawnshop. Small corner stores, cellphone stores and even furniture stores now post signs saying, “We buy gold.”
    The trouble is that many of those stores aren’t reporting their purchases to the police.
    Lead Crime Analyst Matthew Douglas, who is in charge of tracking stolen goods, thought most stores were reporting their purchases. But only eight Schenectady stores report that they buy used goods.
    Given that some streets have three goldbuyers within one block, that number seemed low.
    An informal sweep by The Daily Gazette of just six city streets found four businesses that aren’t reporting their sales: Al’s House of Cards and Collectibles, on Union Street; Antiques and Collectibles, on State Street; Mont Pleasant Thrift, on Crane Street; and Cash It In, on Albany Street.
    Douglas said that made it clear that many stores aren’t following the law.
    “I’m sure there’s more than those four,” he said. “If we’re missing these places, we could be missing stolen property.”
    Most store owners declined to comment. But the owner of Al’s House of Cards and Collectibles said that he didn’t realize he needed a license.
    “I mostly know the people I buy from. People don’t bust into my store going, ‘Yo, yo, yo.’ I buy coins, I don’t buy rings and chains,” Al Itstov said. “I don’t do much of that street stuff. I just send them away to the jewelry store. I don’t need that headache.”
    The owner of Mont Pleasant Thrift insisted that he did have a license, issued in the name of his store, which is new. He refused to say when the license was issued or to give his name.
    Douglas doesn’t think criminals deliberately seek out stores that don’t check IDs or report sales to the police. He’s caught several thieves who sold their stolen property to stores that report to the police.
    “Typically, criminals aren’t the smartest people,” he said. “But we would have more success if we had all the pawnshops.”
    Since the law was passed, the number of burglaries in Schenectady has fallen.
    Other towns have taken notice. Rotterdam may soon create a used-goods license like Schenectady’s to combat burglaries there.
    “We are in fact having trouble … people are selling stolen jewelry,” Deputy Chief G. William Manikas said.
    At the same time, he’s seen many stores in Rotterdam post signs saying that they’ll buy gold. He’s worried that encourages thieves. ........................>>>>..........................>>>>..................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r00103&AppName=1

street smart and getting rich...with stolen property.

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11 merchants cited for sales
By Paul Nelson
Published 09:19 p.m., Monday, April 16, 2012
  

SCHENECTADY — Police and code enforcement officers Monday cited 11 businesses for allegedly failing to comply with the city codes regulating sales and purchases of secondhand merchandise.

"At the mayor's directive, the police department is working closely with other city departments on initiatives that will improve the quality of life for residents," said Lt. Eric Clifford, adding that the periodic sweeps will continue at businesses, including pawnshops and thrift stores. "The goal is voluntary compliance and to prevent the sale of items that are fenced."

All told, detectives from the department's Office of Field Intelligence and city code enforcement officers went to 23 city second-hand shops.

They checked to make sure the store's license was current and that the document along with the city rules on the sale and purchase of secondhand merchandise were properly displayed. Businesses not in compliance received citations. Initially aimed at pawnshops, the rules subject stores buying and selling secondhand items to impromptu visits from police to see what goods they have.............................>>>>.......................>>>>.................Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/11-merchants-cited-for-sales-3486510.php#ixzz1sI2uzpsZ

Quoted from Patches

street smart and getting rich...with stolen property.

EXACTLY what the dems in the city/county/plex in cahoots with their millioniares and politically connected downtown have been doing - STEALING from the homeonwers!   STEALING the hard heard money from the homeowners via high taxes and making the dems and their connected richer.  And while taxing the homeowners to the nth degree, the homeowners lose their homes, i.e., PROPERTY via the money STOLEN from them via making their tax bills almost the highest in the country.   And those homeonwers that do still have properties, well, the dems have STOLEN from them to!   The dems have STOLEN PROPERTY via lowering the values of the homeonwers' properties!


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I am sure the fines are really tough....

The Tool Shed and Predels Scrap Yard rely heavily on stolen goods.  

Quoted from TakingItBack

I am sure the fines are really tough....

The Tool Shed and Predels Scrap Yard rely heavily on stolen goods.  

But they 'do' take license and information and work with the cops!

yeah...but   if   just if......something is worth $$$$$$$$$$$$$...what do u think???....

don't worry it'll all be over soon.....no more cash only plastic or virtual points connected to your fingerprint....

everyone feel protected now?

a sterilized society can't exist for long