South Salt Lake Police help residents avoid purchasing stolen property

Pawnshops, consignment stores and resale stores make up a significant portion of the local South Salt Lake economy.

To counter negative opinions about second-hand business South Salt Lake police are working with local shop owners to educate the community about resale practices.

South Salt Lake Police Sgt. Mikal Wersland said that contrary to popular misconceptions, pawnshops are not a good place for criminals to offload stolen merchandise.

“The pawn shop is the safest place for [lost or stolen property],” Wersland said. “Because of what pawn shops do, a lot of stolen merchandise is recovered.”

All pawnshops are regulated by law and required to keep complete records of property accepted by the store. In addition, to pawn an item a person must show legal identification, which is also recorded.

Pawnshop owners then submit the information to a database for review by law enforcement officials. Police detectives then investigate any suspicious activity.

Consignment stores and resale shops that sell larger, more expensive merchandise such as appliances, must also record all items to be tracked in the database.

Mike Varanakis, owner of Crown Jewelers in South Salt Lake, has owned his pawnshop for 17 years. He also served as a former South Salt Lake City Planning Commission member for the last 10 years and sits on a Utah state board that regulates local pawnshop practices.

Varanakis said all of the property he receives at Crown Jewelers is held for at least 15 days in a secure area to give law enforcement officials the chance to check on the items.

He said only about one in 2,000 items he receives get flagged by police officers as suspicious or possibly stolen.

If an item in the pawnshop is reported as stolen property, the owner can still get the property back after the court system has completely concluded the case.

Wersland said it is important for people to know that all items retrieved from a pawnshop in cases of theft can be returned to the rightful owners after criminal and civil justice proceedings are complete.

“The [owners] don’t have to buy their items back,” Wersland said.

South Salt Lake Police have provided additional tips for residents to keep track of their personal property to help them get it back in case of theft.

Residents should keep track of all of the serial numbers for their electronic equipment. Valuable items without serial numbers, such as hand tools and jewelry, should be photographed for easy identification.

Wersland said police can also find stolen items more easily if people can remember who might have had access to their homes during the time the property went missing.

He said most thefts are, unfortunately, crimes of opportunity.

“Generally, when things are stolen, they’re stolen by family members,” Wersland said.