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Fatwa CenterRepentance for past stolen items
Question
I purchased stolen things from a thief in the past. Now I am afraid of Allah because I bought certain clothing items from this man. This was several years ago and I want to know what to do with some of the clothing items I purchased from him. Should these items be given or thrown away?
Answer
Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions.
Purchasing stolen items after knowing their reality is not permitted. If one does so, he is one of the thieves. He has to return the items to their original owner; if he had sold them then he has to give back their price on the day of their sale to the owner. The ruling is the same if one has used up them and the items no longer exist. Ahmad and Ibn Majah reported from Samurah that the Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam) said: “If belongings of someone are stolen or lost and thereafter he finds the same belongings with another person, he (the real owner) is more entitled to take them. In this case, the purchaser will take the price back from the seller."
If he does not know the owner and cannot pay him back his rights, then he should give the items in charity on behalf of the owner.
As for the price he has paid to the thief, he may take it back from him as stated in the Hadith. If he cannot find the thief, or cannot take that from him he has no right to take it from others.
Therefore, you have to return all the items to their real owner or pay their price if you have used or damaged them. If you do not know the owner, you have to spend that on needy and poor people.
Finally, you have to make sincere repentance and should not repeat this act, again.
Allah knows best.
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