Unclaimed property ready for pick up at Belvoir DES

During the summer months, bicycles become a popular way of transport for everyone on post, especially children.

As bicycles are used more frequently, Fort Belvoir's Directorate of Emergency Services adds lost or stolen bicycles to their collection of unclaimed property more frequently.
"With the summertime, the big thing we get are bicycles," Tim Brown, investigative technician for DES said. "The biggest problem we are having is that people are not registering the bicycles.

"At Tulley Gate, we do have bicycle registration," he said. "Patrons can go in, show an identification card, fill out a form, and, we place a sticker on the bicycle. It's free and we can trace that sticker back to the owner if it is found," Brown said.

Brown said with children out of school, he typically sees two or three bikes a week go into unclaimed property.

In addition to bicycles, some of the other items commonly found include skateboards, wallets, ID cards, watches, glasses and rings.

"When unclaimed property comes in, we make an attempt to locate the owners as best as we can if there is any information on the item," Brown said. "If we are unable to locate an owner, the property is locked up and maintained for 90 days.

"After that, it goes to the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office down in Richmond. If it has any value, it is sold and the money goes to the Directorate of Morale, Welfare and Recreation," Brown said.

According to Brown, to claim property the owner must call the police station and be able to describe the item to DES personnel.

Brown suggested patrons should somehow tag their value items, in case they are stolen or lost.

"Anything that has value, you should write down the serial number," Brown said. "This is another way we can track an item and allow the owner to identify it. Community
members can also mark the item to make it easier to identify."

According to a DES news release, residents are reminded that it is their responsibility to secure unattended property. It is suggested in the release that residents maintain an itemized list of property and valuables to include serial numbers and any other identifiable information.

To make a claim, community members should contact DES unclaimed property at 703-806-0146.