AITA for suing my ex and her boyfriend?

A father discovered that his ex-wife’s husband stole valuable, collectible LEGO sets from his home, claiming they were for the son. When confronted, the stepfather admitted to the theft, but the sets’ value exceeded what they could afford to replace. The father filed a police report and is suing for the loss, despite criticism for his actions. Read the full story below:

‘ AITA for suing my ex and her boyfriend?’

My ex and I divorced three years ago. She was cheating, but at this point I don’t care about the relationship anymore. The pending lawsuit has nothing to do with her or him, but rather their actions. My ex and I have a son 13m that we split time with 50/50. He’s a great kid that interests have changed a lot tbh as I imagine more kids/teenagers tend to do through the years.

One thing my son was heavily into at some point was legos. He use to play with them all the time, and personally I think they’re a great toy for different reasons. I use to love playing them with him, and to this day I still collect boxes that I leave unopened as a collection. Well when my ex and I divorced she got with someone who loved legos more I guess?

From what I know he loves making creations and building the sets in. I don’t care.. seems cool. He does one thing I think is very very weird.. He uses crazy glue so the sets can’t break or pieces can’t be lost. It seems so weird to me. The issue is, I was out of town for all of three days last week for medical reasons, and my son wanted to get his ps4 so he could play it at his moms.

This isn’t out of the ordinary at all and he has a key, so he let me know he would be stopping over for it. I told him to have fun when I saw him on the entry camera. My wife’s husband was with him which was a no-no. I told him via speaker to not go in and to wait on the porch. He flinched but walked in any way. I sent my ex a text telling her to call him and tell him he’s one minute away from a cop call.

He left my home with a bag in hand which I didn’t think much of because my son had his games too. Well my son texted me later that evening and said he didn’t know it at the time but he’s pretty sure SD took some of my sets. These are all old sets and two are worth big money. When I got home I confirmed the missing sets and called my ex.

She had no idea but he admired he took them but it was so son could have the sets to complete his collection… my son doesn’t even like legos anymore and told his mom he wouldn’t steal from me. My wife asked how much it would cost to replace them and unfortunately it’s more than their savings. Actually, it would take their house down payment plus more.

I told them if they didn’t pay in two weeks I was suing and pressing charges. The price in the sets makes it a felony. My ex and her husband are saving for a house which would give my son more space when he’s there, but those sets were going help pay for his education someday or a home of his own. I filed the police report and have talked to a lawyer and we’re moving forward with the suit.

Everyone is calling me a joke because they are just toys, but I don’t get it. They are worth real money.. I’m not rich guys. I needed those to help with my sons future… but again taking this money does deny my son things at his moms house.. AITA here??

See what others had to share with OP:

[Reddit User] −  NTA. Looking at it from just a monetary value, I don’t believe your friends would be saying the same if he had stolen $XX amount of money. He shouldn’t have entered your house without permission and he shouldn’t have stolen the sets. He broke the law, he faces the consequences of his actions. Its about as simple as that.

pwndabeer −  Wait so someone who you didn’t want in your house entered your house and then took something from you. How are you anything but NTA?

tigerkitten_91 −  NTA. if wasn’t anybody’s to take. and if your ex struggles on providing, well they shouldn’t have stolen your s**t, should they?

abcwva −  The stepdad is a thief. He blatantly entered your home and stole from you. Sue him. NTA

HotAudience6110 −  NTA replace “legos” with jewelry and everyone would call it a felony. That’s exactly what he did, he robbed you and should face the consequences. As you point out, these actions have consequences beyond just the legos, they were going to help fund your son’s education.

Make sure your son knows why you are doing this in case his mom tries to twist the story. As for denying things at his mom’s house, it might be a good idea to deny him the s**tty role model his step-dad seems to be.

princessofperky −  NTA make sure you download the clip of you telling him not to enter your house. And notes of what your son said. I hate this phrase but don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time comes to mind. You’re not doing this to them. Him STEALING is what caused his situation

SlightlyTwistedGames −  NTA – your property was stolen. Your ex’s SO broke the law. Toys – especially older toys – are incredibly valuable. There are individual Magic cards worth over $3000. There are vintage dolls worth over $1000. It really doesn’t matter whether your stolen property was legos, jewelry, or cash. The law is that one person doesn’t get to take property from another person

leggomylego75389263 −  Yeah I have the video, texts, and my son saw the sets later in the evening at their home.

Nova_Lurker −  NTA. He walked into your house *after you told him to wait outside* and stole your property. Property that was an investment for your sons future. The only person to blame here is the ex’s boyfriend. Here’s a question though, why can’t they just bring them back? Did they do something to ruin the sets?

enoughwiththenames77 −  NTA. But thats easy to say when im not the one being sued and i dont know the people personally. I think its a good idea to sue not just because of the money but because it sets a very clear boundary and thats sometimes what people like this need.

And they are going to be in your life forever. I dont care that its “just toys” and neither will a judge. Oh and they are both definitely assholes. For going into your house when you set a boundary and then STEALING FROM YOU. Wtf.

Is the father justified in suing for the stolen items to secure his son’s future, or is he taking things too far by pressing charges? Share your thoughts below!