Pawn Shops: Are They A Rip Off?

There's a lawsuit going on right now involving "Pawn Stars" and stolen coins.

According to a criminal complaint, David Walters' niece stole his $50,000 coin collection. She later took it to a famous Las Vegas pawn shop that's featured on a TV show and ended up with just over $12,000.

Walters apparently found out about the situation and contacted the pawn shop, in hopes they wouldn't sell off his treasures -- only to find out that the shop melted the coins down. The pawn shop says it waited the 30 to 90 day limit before melting the coins down, so Walters is flat out of luck.

Have you ever had something valuable stolen by a friend or family member, only to see it pawned? Were you able to recover the item?

Do you buy or sell at pawn shops? What's the most valuable thing you ever hocked?