> Once investigations are complete you should
> have your property returned.
1. If they police never end up charging him, they will tend to keep the equipment indefinitely[1] 'just in case' they need to use it to charge him in the future. Even if they determined that no crime was committed.
2. There is a high likelihood of the equipment being returned in pieces with him having no recourse to sue the police for damages because they were broken 'during the course of the investigation.' Or maybe they were 'logged in as broken' even though they left his house in working order.
[1]: There also exists a high likelihood that they may 'walk out' of evidence and magically turn up in the hands of friends/family of police who are none-the-wiser about where it came from.
2. There is a high likelihood of the equipment being returned in pieces with him having no recourse to sue the police for damages because they were broken 'during the course of the investigation.' Or maybe they were 'logged in as broken' even though they left his house in working order.
[1]: There also exists a high likelihood that they may 'walk out' of evidence and magically turn up in the hands of friends/family of police who are none-the-wiser about where it came from.