Some preliminary information after talking with my friend. Keep in mind he is a student and this information is for educational purposes.
Based on information posted here by the SEC:
http://investor.gov/news-alerts/investor-alerts/investor-alert-bitcoin-other-virtual-currency-related-investments#.U2xiDfldU4M"Bitcoin has been described as a decentralized, peer-to-peer virtual currency that is used like money –
it can be exchanged for traditional currencies such as the U.S. dollar, or used to purchase goods or services, usually online"
and
"
IRS treats Bitcoin as property. The IRS recently issued guidance stating that it will treat virtual currencies, such as Bitcoin, as property for federal tax purposes. As a result, general tax principles that apply to property transactions apply to transactions using virtual currency"
I'm interpreting this as Bitcoin being treated the same way stocks would be aka securities.
Since I wasn't personally injured or affected by this incident, I can't file a civil suit against Patrick Strateman. I highly encourage anybody (
the more the better) to contact a lawyer knowledgeable about securities fraud in California. (I can help find the correct lawyer for this if you'd like). The large sum of money stolen along with the fact that Bitcoin is new ground for law can make this an extremely attractive case for the right lawyer. If you live out of state but still in the US, you can still file a civil suit locally and since it's across state lines, there will be federal investigation.
I see that icicle posted information about filing a police report in San Francisco. I highly encourage this as well. I can file a police report but they will ask me how I was affected and why those that were affected aren't filling reports. I will still file one to attract more attention to him. The more people file police reports against him, the better. The FBI will get involved.
I will still scope out his location and attempt to ask him some questions, but I feel a civil suit is the best method to retrieving everybody's coins.