criminal-law
Merchant charging thief doubled price on stolen merchandise
<p>I’m curious about an interaction between a merchant and a thief. </p>

<p>Drawing from a well-known Youtube channel, a prime example is a thief and a local gas station. The thief is shown in video footage stealing merchandise from the gas station. The thief then selects cheap items to purchase to avoid suspicion. The merchant engages in a trade for the “faux” merchandise and waits for the thief to leave the premises. At that point, the merchant leaves and confronts the thief. Let’s say for this example the thief admits to stealing the merchandise. </p>

<p>Does the merchant have a legal right to increase the sale price of the stolen merchandise? And what kind of legal actions does the merchant have available if the thief agrees to only pay the original price (assuming its legal for the merchant to increase the price of the stolen items in the first place)?</p>

<p>The options available to the merchant are:</p>

<p>Force the thief to hand over the stolen goods.</p>

<p>Charge the thief the value of the stolen goods. He cannot increase the price charged as revenge for the theft.</p>
