SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A Volkswagen van stolen 35 years ago from Spokane has been found in a shipping container at the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport.
The Spokesman-Review newspaper reported that customs agents found the 1965 van on Oct. 19 when they opened a shipping container bound for The Netherlands. Running the vehicle identification number revealed it was still listed as stolen. The current owner is an insurance company, which presumably paid off the owner. The original owner has not been identified.
Law officers said the van, which is in great shape, was reported stolen from a repair shop on July 12, 1974, while Spokane was hosting the 1974 World's Fair.
The California Highway Patrol is investigating.
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Information from: The Spokesman-Review, http://www.spokesman.com
monoblocks said on November 6, 2009 at 3:49 PM
Likely someone for the insurance company along the way forgot to notify authorities that the van was recovered, although where it's been for the last 35 years would still be interesting to find out...unless of course it's been sitting unused and neglected in some warehouse that the insurance company has for decades since its recovery. That said, depending on what 'great shape' means, a mid 60s VW bus would be highly desirable as a collectible.