Haikou resident Mr. Lin and his wife had an estranged relationship and had been living separately for over a year. One month ago, his wife Ms. Zhu suddenly returned home, took away their Mazda car, and sold it to someone else for 40,000 yuan without Mr. Lin's knowledge. On November 29, Mr. Lin was surprised to find his beloved car parked in the Datong Hotel parking lot in Haikou, so he immediately drove it back home. However, the new owner noticed the car was missing and promptly reported it to the police.
Now, Mr. Lin is in a difficult situation as his wife has disappeared, making it hard for him to explain clearly. Moreover, the car has been seized by the police station.
According to Mr. Lin, this Mazda sedan was purchased two years ago by him and his wife for business purposes, with the ownership registered under his wife’s name. However, due to various reasons, they constantly argued and their relationship became strained, almost reaching the point of being incompatible. In anger, his wife moved out. One day a month ago, she secretly returned home while he was not there and drove the car away, which made him very angry. But since his wife wouldn’t answer his calls, he could only temporarily set the matter aside.
On November 29 at around 4 PM, while shopping near the Datong Hotel parking lot, Mr. Lin accidentally saw his car parked there. He tried the car key in his hand, and unexpectedly, the car door opened immediately. Overjoyed, Mr. Lin drove the car back home.
However, what Mr. Lin didn't expect was that the next day after retrieving his beloved car, a Mr. Huang came to his house claiming that he had already bought the car and wanted it back. The two men immediately started arguing, refusing to give in to each other. After receiving the report, the police officers from the police station arrived at the scene and confiscated the car. Mr. Lin said: "I had no idea the car had been sold to someone else until my wife's good friend called me later and informed me about it."
This morning, Mr. Huang, the buyer, recounted the incident to reporters at the Zhongshan Police Station: "When I went upstairs to handle some business at the hotel, it only took about an hour, but when I came down, I found the car gone, so I immediately reported it to the police." Mr. Huang stated that he was unaware of the issues between Mr. Lin and his wife. He paid 40,000 yuan and reached a verbal agreement with Mr. Lin's wife, Ms. Zhu, to buy the car. "If I had known about their marital discord, I would never have troubled myself to buy the car," Mr. Huang said angrily. He insisted that either Mr. Lin return the car to him or refund the 40,000 yuan.
Mr. Lin also felt justified: "My wife selling the car was something I didn't know about. Now that I've retrieved my own car, he reports me for stealing it. The car hasn't been transferred yet, and I have all the necessary documents. Why should my car be seized?" Mr. Lin believed he had every reason to take back his car.
An officer handling the case at the Zhongshan Police Station told reporters that since the car hadn't been officially transferred and Mr. Lin possessed all the relevant documentation proving ownership, no crime had been committed. However, the current situation requires the parties involved to negotiate a resolution. The officer suggested that the immediate priority is to quickly locate Ms. Zhu to clarify the situation. However, Mr. Lin looked troubled, stating that he had not been able to contact his wife for a long time.