(a) A pawnbroker shall retain any and all goods or articles pledged with him or her until the expiration of 72 hours after the pledge was made, and shall retain any goods or articles purchased by him or her until the expiration of 15 days after the purchase was made. The licensee may dispose of such goods or articles sooner with the written permission of the Police Department.
(b) If the Chief of Police to whom the licensee made available the information required by § 856.07 has probable cause to believe that the article described therein is stolen property, he or she shall notify the licensee in writing. Upon receipt of such a notice, the licensee shall retain the article until the expiration of 30 days after the day on which he or she is first required to make available the information required by § 856.07, unless the Chief notifies the licensee in writing that he or she is not required to retain the article until such expiration.
(c) (1) If the Chief receives a report that property has been stolen and determines the identity of the true owner of the allegedly stolen property that has been purchased or pawned and is held by a licensee, and informs the licensee of the true owner’s identity, the licensee shall immediately restore the allegedly stolen property to the true owner directly.
(2) If a licensee fails to restore the allegedly stolen property as required by this division, the true owner may recover the property from the licensee in an action at law.
(d) If the licensee returns the allegedly stolen property to the true owner, the licensee may charge the person who pledged or sold the allegedly stolen property to him or her, and any person who acted in consort with the pledgor or the seller to defraud the licensee, the amount the licensee paid or loaned for the allegedly stolen property, plus interest and storage charges provided for in § 856.04.
(ORC 4727.12)