sailor
Merry Whatever ..R.I.P. dadkins
Premium
join:2003-10-21
Long Island
| VW van stolen 35 years ago found
SPOKANE, Wash. – A Volkswagen van stolen 35 years ago in Washington state has been found in a shipping container at the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport.
Customs agents found the 1965 van on Oct. 19 when they opened a shipping container bound for The Netherlands, The Spokesman-Review newspaper reported. They ran the vehicle identification number and discovered it was listed as stolen.
Law officers said the van, which is in great shape, was stolen from an upholstery shop in Spokane on July 12, 1974 — while Spokane was hosting the 1974 World's Fair.
Authorities have not been able to find the original owner, whom they would not identify.
The operators of a vehicle restoration business in Arizona were the latest to have possession of the van, which they refurbished and planned to sell overseas, said Michael Maleta, an investigator with the California Highway Patrol. Maleta said the shop is also considered a victim in the case, and he declined to identify it.
The van now legally belongs to Allstate Insurance Co., which paid off the original owner's theft claim back in 1974. The Highway Patrol turned over the van to Allstate this week.
Maleta said the van had been restored to pristine condition.
"Now it's probably worth 27 grand," he said. "It's a beautiful van."
Megan Brunet, a spokeswoman for Allstate, said the company is looking through old records trying to find the original policy and theft claim.
"Trying to find paper files from that far back can be pretty challenging," she said.
The company will likely have the van appraised and go through the process of getting a replacement title before selling it at auction, she said.
»news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_recovered_van |
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Lurch77
Stop looking at me.
Premium
join:2001-11-22
+44.88-87.89 | Wow is that thing beautiful! I love those old vans, especially the split windows, and this one is one of the nicest I have seen. |
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sailor
Merry Whatever ..R.I.P. dadkins
Premium
join:2003-10-21
Long Island
| One of the nicest ones I've seen as well. After reading the story my first thought was to contact Allstate and tell them to let me know when it goes on the auction block but then common sense kicked in and I deleted that thought from my mind as I have to many toys to play with as it is.
Probably won't ever see the auction block. Someone at Allstate will probably recognize it for what it is and buy it directly from them. |
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Doctor Olds
I Need A Remedy For What's Ailing Me.
Premium,VIP
join:2001-04-19
1970 442 W30
clubs: | reply to sailor
Can you imagine being the original owner and getting a call 35 Years later???
I hope it gets back home. |
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