County Executive Joined by Law Enforcement to Sign Measure Curtailing Distribution, Facilitating Recovery of Stolen Property

ERIE COUNTY, NY— Today, Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz was joined by Chief of Narcotics for the Erie County Sheriff’s Office Alan Rozansky and law enforcement officials from the towns of West Seneca, Orchard Park, Evans, and Amherst to sign Local Law Intro. No. 1-5, which regulates pawnbrokers, second hand dealers, coin exchange dealers, and dealers in jewelry and precious metals. The purpose of the new law is to establish a uniform system for tracking the sales of precious metal exchanges, pawn shops and second hand merchants to assist the law enforcement community in tracking and recovering stolen property. It can be read here.

“This law will make it more difficult for thieves to sell their stolen goods while making it easier for law enforcement to track those goods and see that they are returned to their rightful owners. Many of these thefts are committed by individuals seeking quick cash to feed a drug habit, often stealing from their own family members, so this law will immediately put a crimp in these activities in several ways,” said Poloncarz. “By requiring pawn shop operators to obtain valid identification from everyone seeking to sell items, taking a comprehensive inventory of these items that includes photographic images, and barring transactions with anyone under the age of 18 we will discourage illegal sales and increase the likelihood of crime victims getting their belongings back.”

Chief Alan Rozansky added, “After more than 7 years of pursuing a countywide pawnshop law with the Erie County legislators, it is very rewarding to finally have a bipartisan group that worked with myself, fellow law enforcement partners, and County Executive Poloncarz to achieve a victory for the citizens of Erie County.” 

The new law also requires pawn shop owners to retain items for a longer time, which will increase the success rate for retrieval of stolen items. Approved unanimously by the Erie County Legislature in December 2015, the law will go into effect when filed with the NYS Secretary of State.