It is not legal to have control over property someone else stole if you knew at the time it had been stolen. According to Colorado Revised Statutes 18-4-404, if you know that you have received stolen property, you can be tried, convicted, and punished even if the person you received the property is not convicted of stealing the property. This is also considered “theft by receiving.”
Theft by receiving basically involves receiving property that the person receiving the property knew it had been stolen. For example, if a person receives valuable property or merchandise for free or at an extreme discount, that person could be charged with theft by receiving. A common scenario could be a stranger in a parking lot selling valuable electronics at a fraction of the normal price out of a trunk of a car. However, this does not necessarily mean the person the person buying the property is guilty. The main defense in this situation is that the buyer or receiver of the property did not know the property was stolen. If the person selling the property states that it is stole or that it fell off a truck, the buyer likely has knowledge that the property is stolen.
Anyone charged with theft by receiving should consult with a defense attorney that is knowledgeable of the state law. The statute in Colorado is 18-4-410.
Colorado Revised Statute § 18-4-404. Obtaining Control over Any Stolen Thing of Value - Conviction
Every person who obtains control over any stolen thing of value, knowing the thing of value to have been stolen by another, may be tried, convicted, and punished whether or not the principal is charged, tried, or convicted.
Colorado Revised Statute § 18-4-410. Theft by Receiving
(1) Except as provided in subsection (6) of this section, a person commits theft by receiving when he receives, retains, loans money by pawn or pledge on, or disposes of anything of value of another, knowing or believing that said thing of value has been stolen, and when he intends to deprive the lawful owner permanently of the use or benefit of the thing of value.
(2) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2007, p. 1692, § 6, effective July 1, 2007.)
(3) Where the value of the thing involved is less than five hundred dollars, theft by receiving is a class 2 misdemeanor.
(3.5) Where the value of the thing involved is five hundred dollars or more but less than one thousand dollars, theft by receiving is a class 1 misdemeanor.
(4) Where the value of the thing involved is one thousand dollars or more but less than twenty thousand dollars, theft by receiving is a class 4 felony.
(5) Where the value of the thing involved is twenty thousand dollars or more, theft by receiving is a class 3 felony.
(6) When the aggregate value of the thing or things involved is one thousand dollars or more and the person committing theft by receiving is engaged in the business of buying, selling, or otherwise disposing of stolen goods for a profit, theft by receiving is a class 3 felony.
(7) When a person commits theft by receiving twice or more within a period of six months, two or more of the thefts by receiving may be aggregated and charged in a single count, in which event the thefts so aggregated and charged shall constitute a single offense, and, if the aggregate value of the things involved is one thousand dollars or more but less than twenty thousand dollars, it is a class 4 felony; however, if the aggregate value of the things involved is twenty thousand dollars or more, it is a class 3 felony.
