I know a guy who returned a stolen bike to its rightful owner. He also did not know the bike was stolen until he heard about a bike shop's dirty dealings. Apparently the shop was in money trouble so it told some customers that the shop had been broken into and their bikes were taken. Meanwhile they sold the bikes to unwitting customers who thought the bikes were legit. When my friend found out about the scam he returned the bike to the lawful owner and didn't ask for a cent. I don't know if he ever recovered the $ he was out.