FW: [Harp-L] Re: Butterfield amp on ebay

["Eric Neumann" <eneumann@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

FWD'ing to share.

-----Original Message-----
From: Joe and Cass Leone [mailto:leone@xxxxxxxx] 
Sent: Thursday, June 09, 2005 12:48 PM
To: Eric Neumann
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Re: Butterfield amp on ebay



On Jun 9, 2005, at 12:02 PM, Eric Neumann wrote:
>
> The Amp is stolen property but staue of limitations doesn't allow the 
> police to act

  There is no statute of limitations. Once the amp is stolen, it's 
stolen property until it returns to the lawful (?) owner. What the 
police are telling you is: since it has crossed state lines, it is too 
'deminimus' to fool with. btw, how MUCH time was waited until the 
police were contacted?

>  it becomes a civil matter requiring a lwayer and legal fees & court
> fees are looking at more than what the thief wants for the amp.

  True
>
> Basically, the police would be violating the offenders rights by 
> continuing to phone him--Can you believe that??????

  False, police cannot be charged with harassment when engaged in 
investigating a crime.
>
> The following are our e-mails to the person listing the stolen amp. 
> His replies to 3 of our e-mails are on e-bay.
>
> This is Salli & Gabriel Butterfield writing. Amp is stolen from us. 
> Wil C. begged to borrow it under pretense he would repair it if he 
> could use it
> a
> short time & would get it right back to us. Instead skipped state with
> it.

  Herein lies the rub. Amp was originally loaned. Pretense becomes a he 
said she said deal. Amp was obtained through false pretense(s) which 
is, in itself, a crime, except that borrowing may have been the 
original intent in the first place. Showing intent is beneficial to 
prosecuting the crime. As it sits, ANYONE who possesses this amp is in 
possession of stolen goods and while the original prosecution for the 
theft may be unobtainable, an arrest for possessing it can be had if, 
at some other time, or under some other circumstances, the serial 
number becomes a hit on codus, at which time the case can be 'included' 
in a multiple 'clean-up' supplimental crime report.

> We have it on film Wil C admitting it was mine. He spoke w/ Salli & 
> promised countless times to ship it back. Then he states he wants 
> money for repairs
> on it. We told him to give us a figure & receipt & we'd even pay
> shipping.
> Of course he never phoned back & when I phoned he hug up on me. We
> contacted his brother who stated we should just buy it from Wil C.
> because Wil C. really likes it. He has eluded us. He has also made 
> false
>
> claim that there were 3 Amps when there were only 2 & falsely listed 
> it as all original parts, when he admits to taking it & claims to 
> repairing it
> to
> police, so how could this amp have original parts.

  An amp can be repaired without changing parts. Wiring would qualify as

repairs with NO parts change.

>  He was not a friend
> of
> Paul's. Dad had distaste for him & had him removed from a club.

  Then he shouldn't have been 'loaned' the amp.

>  He has
> stolen this amp from me & I want it back.

  Stolen will be hard to prove. Depriving someone of their property 
without their consent is the closer evaluation, (charged as 'receiving 
stolen goods')

>  We have contacted all pawn
> shops,
> the Santa Cruz Police & Santa Cruz attorney.
>
> Salli & Gabriel Butterfield again. We have contacted all pawn shops,
> the
>
> Santa Cruz Police & Santa Cruz attorney. There are two official case 
> numbers regarding this matter. We have also contacted e-Bay Safe 
> Harbor & Fraud Dept. All Harp Groups have been posting notices and 
> even groups in Canada
> are listing notices. this amp is stolen and we should not have to pay
> for
> our property. Further that Amp did not have a yellow PB on side of it,
> Wil
> C. put that there as the Amp I have has PB stenciled on it.
>
> Salli & Gabe again. We know that Wil C. did not inform you of the
> detail
>
> that he stole the Amp. This has sentimental value to us as everything
> of
> my
> father's was stolen during his funeral. The family has little to 
> nothing
> of
> Dad's. We established "The Paul Butterfield Fund & Society" in honor
of
> my
> father & this was to be part of the Educational Archival
> Collection/Exhibit
> & Wil C knew this. He also knew it was to be part of The Sweet Home
> Chicago
> Tour. Out of his greed he has taken advantage of my kindness & tried
to
> capitalize off something not his. I hope that you will do the right
> thing.
>
> This is Salli, Gabe Butterfield's wife. Before I was even with Gabe I 
> was exclusively managing Gabe & looking into matters of his father's
> estate.
>
> That Amp was often at my house after gigs & both my daughter & I 
> hauled that Amp. I was opposed to Gabe lending that amp out to Wil C. 
> & did not believe
> Gabe would ever see it again. My instincts were correct.

  Smart girl

>  What Wil C is
> doing
> is so very wrong. He has obviously gone over the deep end finding ways

> to justify his wrong doing. For the privilege of using this Amp for so
> long
>
> against our wishes, it is the least he could have done was to maintain

> the Amp he stole from us. Please help right this wrong-this is a heart
> wrench
> for Gabe.
>
> Our phone # is 305-304-2226 & our e-mail is 
> butterfieldsociety@xxxxxxxxxxx if you would like to contact us 
> directly. We know you probably were just
>
> enthusiastically helping out a friend, but you should have asked for 
> more specifics--proof of repair, proof of Wil C owning the Amp
> something...He
>
> lied to us & he lied to you. You can't let him get away with this.
> Salli
> & Gabe
>
> Thank you so much. You have been a dear and we can see that you were 
> innocently caught in the middle Thanks to Wil C.  Unfortunately Wil C 
> will not return our phone calls nor will he provide a receipt for 
> repairs. He
> has
> yet to even provide a figure of what he spent or what he allegedly did
> on
> the Amp. But, like we said for all the time he has had the amp against
> our
> wishes he should have been paying us. Guess our biggest mistake was
not
> contacting the police sooner.
>
>
> Thanks to everyone for there support!!!!!
> with warmth,
> Salli & Gabe