A new employee at the LBC Boutique and Loan in Davis Square had no idea a violin he bought for $50 was actually worth five-thousand times that price — and was being missed by it’s rightful owner.
The violin was a Ferdinando Gagliano, hand crafted and one of a kind, dating back to 1759 — older than the United States itself. It is valued around $250,000, but it’s history is priceless.
To the dismay of pawn shop employees, the instrument was discovered to have been stolen during a house break in Somerville.
"We got a call from a detective from the Somerville Police Department," Dylan McDermitt of LBC Boutique and Loan said. "This particular [seller] had no criminal background history."
McDermitt says the pawn shop is required by law to hold pieces for 30 days in case items are discovered stolen, as in this case.
As of now, the one-of-a-kind instrument is being returned to its rightful owner.
The investigation into how the thief got ahold of the violin is ongoing.
"We’re going to start asking the customers to play the violins to make sure that we know it’s theirs," McDermitt said
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