u/Mobile_Minimum_6649

Hi everyone. I am getting pretty desperate to post this on Reddit.

My name is Brandon. I recently separated from active military service after 7.5 years as an Army Staff Sergeant (SSG) and disabled veteran. Right after returning from my deployment to Iraq, I bought an almost-new (1k miles) 2019 Harley-Davidson XL1200 Roadster.

Every vehicle I had owned prior was a beat-up 15-year-old car, so buying this bike was a major milestone and my primary outlet to manage stress after returning home. Shortly after getting it, I PCS'd to Vicenza, Italy. My motorcycle was locked in a government storage facility (Vicenza VPC) operated by a contractor. While secured inside that locked contractor compound, the bike was stolen.

The 3-Year Battle & Current Hardship

Because the theft occurred on a military facility, I was required to exhaust three years of government claim cycles, denials, and appeals before taking private action. The final Navy JAG Appeal determination (File No. J250422) officially denied federal liability, explicitly ruling that physical custody and legal responsibility rested on the third-party defense contractor operating the lot—International Auto Logistics (IAL).

Paying for a Ghost Bike: I am still actively making monthly loan payments to Harley-Davidson Financial on a motorcycle that was stolen three years ago under contractor watch. Transition & Health Struggles: I am currently unemployed, using VA disability payments to pay off post-military debt, and relying on VA disability while managing service-connected health issues.

Refusal to Reimburse: The contractor has repeatedly refused to reimburse my loss, forcing me to file a civil lawsuit within 24 days in Glynn County State Court, GA (where the contractor is headquartered).

What Funds Will Cover All donations directly support my ability to pursue full accountability and resolve this debt:

-Court e-filing fees and Sheriff service of process costs in Georgia Discovery costs and administrative legal expenses

-Case-related travel and logistics expenses

-Any excess funds beyond court costs will go directly toward replacing the motorcycle so I can put this three-year fight behind me.

I have never asked for financial help like this before—I am usually the one donating. Whether you can contribute, give legal advice, or simply share the campaign across military, veteran, and riding communities, your help means everything to me. Thank you.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/Support-Veterans-Legal-Fight-for-His-Stolen-Bike

Hi everyone. I am getting pretty desperate to post this on Reddit.

My name is Brandon. I recently separated from active military service after 7.5 years as an Army Staff Sergeant (SSG) and disabled veteran. Right after returning from my deployment to Iraq, I bought an almost-new (1k miles) 2019 Harley-Davidson XL1200 Roadster.

Every vehicle I had owned prior was a beat-up 15-year-old car, so buying this bike was a major milestone and my primary outlet to manage stress after returning home. Shortly after getting it, I PCS'd to Vicenza, Italy. My motorcycle was locked in a government storage facility (Vicenza VPC) operated by a contractor. While secured inside that locked contractor compound, the bike was stolen.

The 3-Year Battle & Current Hardship

Because the theft occurred on a military facility, I was required to exhaust three years of government claim cycles, denials, and appeals before taking private action. The final Navy JAG Appeal determination (File No. J250422) officially denied federal liability, explicitly ruling that physical custody and legal responsibility rested on the third-party defense contractor operating the lot—International Auto Logistics (IAL).

Paying for a Ghost Bike: I am still actively making monthly loan payments to Harley-Davidson Financial on a motorcycle that was stolen three years ago under contractor watch. Transition & Health Struggles: I am currently unemployed, using VA disability payments to pay off post-military debt, and relying on VA disability while managing service-connected health issues.

Refusal to Reimburse: The contractor has repeatedly refused to reimburse my loss, forcing me to file a civil lawsuit within 24 days in Glynn County State Court, GA (where the contractor is headquartered).

What Funds Will Cover All donations directly support my ability to pursue full accountability and resolve this debt:

-Court e-filing fees and Sheriff service of process costs in Georgia Discovery costs and administrative legal expenses

-Case-related travel and logistics expenses

-Any excess funds beyond court costs will go directly toward replacing the motorcycle so I can put this three-year fight behind me.

I have never asked for financial help like this before—I am usually the one donating. Whether you can contribute, give legal advice, or simply share the campaign across military, veteran, and riding communities, your help means everything to me. Thank you.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/Support-Veterans-Legal-Fight-for-His-Stolen-Bike

Hi everyone. I am getting pretty desperate to post this on Reddit.

My name is Brandon. I recently separated from active military service after 7.5 years as an Army Staff Sergeant (SSG) and disabled veteran. Right after returning from my deployment to Iraq, I bought an almost-new (1k miles) 2019 Harley-Davidson XL1200 Roadster.

Every vehicle I had owned prior was a beat-up 15-year-old car, so buying this bike was a major milestone and my primary outlet to manage stress after returning home. Shortly after getting it, I PCS'd to Vicenza, Italy. My motorcycle was locked in a government storage facility (Vicenza VPC) operated by a contractor. While secured inside that locked contractor compound, the bike was stolen.

The 3-Year Battle & Current Hardship

Because the theft occurred on a military facility, I was required to exhaust three years of government claim cycles, denials, and appeals before taking private action. The final Navy JAG Appeal determination (File No. J250422) officially denied federal liability, explicitly ruling that physical custody and legal responsibility rested on the third-party defense contractor operating the lot—International Auto Logistics (IAL).

Paying for a Ghost Bike: I am still actively making monthly loan payments to Harley-Davidson Financial on a motorcycle that was stolen three years ago under contractor watch. Transition & Health Struggles: I am currently unemployed, using VA disability payments to pay off post-military debt, and relying on VA disability while managing service-connected health issues.

Refusal to Reimburse: The contractor has repeatedly refused to reimburse my loss, forcing me to file a civil lawsuit within 24 days in Glynn County State Court, GA (where the contractor is headquartered).

What Funds Will Cover All donations directly support my ability to pursue full accountability and resolve this debt:

-Court e-filing fees and Sheriff service of process costs in Georgia Discovery costs and administrative legal expenses

-Case-related travel and logistics expenses

-Any excess funds beyond court costs will go directly toward replacing the motorcycle so I can put this three-year fight behind me.

I have never asked for financial help like this before—I am usually the one donating. Whether you can contribute, give legal advice, or simply share the campaign across military, veteran, and riding communities, your help means everything to me. Thank you.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/Support-Veterans-Legal-Fight-for-His-Stolen-Bike

Hey everyone,

At this point I am getting desperate enough to make this post on Reddit. A lot of Vets ride out there, if you are one of them and have advice it would be greatly appriciated.

Wanted to share my story about my 2019 Harley-Davidson XL1200 Roadster and the 3-year administrative nightmare I’ve been navigating after it was stolen.

Right after coming back from an Army deployment to Iraq, I bought this Roadster with barely 1,000 miles on it. Before this, every vehicle I ever owned was a 15-year-old beat-up daily driver. Getting this bike was a huge milestone for me, and riding became my primary way to de-stress after active duty.

Shortly after buying it, I received PCS orders from Fort Bragg, NC to Vicenza, Italy. My bike was placed over to the locked Vehicle Processing Center (Vicenza VPC) for overseas shipping and storage. While secured inside that contractor-run lot, it was stolen.

Because the theft happened on a government facility, military regulations forced me through a mandatory 3-year claims process through Army and Navy channels before I could take private civil action.

The turning point came with my final Navy JAG appeal determination (File No. J250422). The Navy JAG officially denied federal government liability, explicitly confirming that liability rests on the third-party defense contractor operating the lot—International Auto Logistics (IAL).

Where Things Stand Now

Paying for a Ghost Bike: I am still actively making monthly loan payments to Harley-Davidson Financial on a motorcycle that was stolen three years ago.

Contractor Refusal: IAL has repeatedly refused to reimburse the loss or take responsibility.

Taking Them to Court: With military administrative channels exhausted, I am filing a civil lawsuit against IAL in Glynn County State Court, GA (where they are headquartered) for full market value and loss-of-use damages.

Proof & How to Support I uploaded redacted receipts, police reports, the Navy JAG decision, loan payment statements, and photos of the Roadster in the attached gallery/Imgur album.

I’m currently unemployed and navigating VA disability for deployment injuries and injuries sustained after, so I started a GoFundMe to help cover out-of-pocket court filing fees, process serving, and legal expenses.

If you’ve got advice on pro se filings against military contractors, or just want to share the story across riding groups to bring visibility to contractor accountability, I’d appreciate it. I am hoping to finally resolve this soon so I can get a bike and start riding again. Ride safe out there.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/Support-Veterans-Legal-Fight-for-His-Stolen-Bike