ELLSWORTH, Maine — A former local pawn shop owner has been convicted of failing to keep proper records for his business, according to a local prosecutor.
Jonathan Tardiff, who used to own and operate the Needful Things shop on High Street, was convicted last week in Hancock County Superior Court of misdemeanor charges of “dealer in used property violation,” according to Assistant Hancock County District Attorney Mary Kellett.
With the conviction, Tardiff was fined $300 and $400 for the two offenses, Kellett said.
Tardiff was charged after police received two complaints last year of stolen items showing up in Tardiff’s shop. When police went to investigate, Kellett said, Tardiff could not produce records that would have indicated from whom and when he bought the items. State law requires pawn shops to document the identity of people they purchase items from, what items they buy and when they buy them, and to provide that information to police upon request, she said.
“He wasn’t able to produce any records for those items,” the prosecutor said.
One item was a unique wedding ring, made from two rings that had been soldered together, that the owner saw in the shop on March 28, 2011, Kellett said. The ring had been reported stolen in October 2010 and the woman had photos of the ring to support her claim that it was hers.
The second item was a money clip fashioned by a Sullivan jeweler, according to Kellett. The clip disappeared from the owner’s home around New Year’s Eve 2010 and turned up in Tardiff’s shop on Feb. 15, 2011, she said.
Tardiff was not charged with receiving stolen property because police had no evidence that Tardiff knew the items were stolen when he acquired them, Kellett said.
Tardiff since has moved his business to Trenton.
Tardiff’s defense attorney, A.J. Greif of Bangor, said Wednesday afternoon that he plans to appeal the conviction. He said the charge filed against his client was that he failed to make his pawn shop records available to police, when in fact he did make those records available. At trial, however, the district attorney’s office argued that Tardiff failed to create required records for the purchase of those items — which Greif said is a different allegation than what Tardiff was charged with by police.
Greif said that the items were not stolen but in fact were acquired by his client before he went into the pawn shop business. Both the wedding ring and the money clip were bought by Tardiff in Pawleys Island, S.C., in February 2010, he said. Tardiff was not required by Maine law to create purchase records for those items because, at the time, he did not operate a business in Maine, he argued.
“I expect the conviction to be reversed,” Greif said.
Follow BDN reporter Bill Trotter on Twitter at @billtrotter.
This guy is shady and has also been investigated by the FBI for EBay Fraud. I hope he is prosecuted and finally held accountable. Stay away from his business.
No more shady than the scumbag representing him.
These pawn shop people need to be watched more closely. They usually have shops in different cities. Buy in Bangor then sell in Portland and visa versa. That way when you discover something missing and check the local pawn shop you won’t find your property. Most are just as bad if not worse than the actual burgulars.
Sounds like a shady guy….Wonder how many other stolen items he has taken in. Especially with all the recent break-ins.
Bought in SC…. HAhahahahahahaha… Riiiight!
Double post
It doesn’t say where either of the items were stolen, but presuming that they were local thefts, what a coincidence that he would purchase these items in South Carolina and subsequently bring them to the area from which they had been reported stolen.
Are you saying that this long time reputable type of business isn’t all run like the “Pawn Stars”? Shocking! Who’da thunk they’d have been laundering? :|
Pawn shops should be illegal.
Pawn shops where around long before banks and where the primary way many where able to get cash when needed. Also if you think about it outlawing them does nothing but make catching bg’s harder as many thieves sell what they steal to others via personal sales or on ebay or craigslist where a le never gets a record of the transaction.
“Greif”-ter
hmmm…kinda makes me wonder if his name was misspelled.
Isn’t this the same guy who was allegedly held up last summer outside if his pawn shop?
His story does not make any sense at all, he buys those items in another state but we’re stolen from this state, sounds real shady to me… I remember reading another article about this guy being held up last summer too!! This guy is shady & has a criminal past from what i’ve heard. Maybe he should just close shop & stop supporting the low lifes out there!!! Guess you know where to look if you’re missing stuff.. If he’s telling the truth that would be one heck of a story!!!
He is a shady businessman, Alot of his items are stolen.. He’s a CON ARTIST he’s selling alot of FAKE items he says are real…He should be investigated by the FBI and the IRS…This guy is a CON!!