What to do with belongings stolen before reaching the age of puberty

Question:

A person used to steal before reaching puberty, is it upon him to return the amount or not?

Answer:

Yes it’s obligatory, this is the wealth of the people, if he gathered it while he was young, and he knew the ruling after he grew older, it’s not upon him to remain consistent upon that haraam,

لا يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ لَحْمٌ نبَتَ منَ السُّحْتِ وكلُّ لحمٍ نبَتَ منَ السُّحْتِ كَانَتِ النَّارُ أَوْلَى بِهِ

“No flesh which is grown from the unlawful will enter Jannah, and every flesh grown from the unlawful then the fire has more precedence to it.”

كل المسلم على المسلم حرام عرضه وماله ودمه

“Every Muslim is unlawful to another Muslim, his honour, his wealth, his blood.”

So anything a person took without due right and it’s owner remains alive or it’s possible for it to reach him it’s obligatory upon him to return it due to the mentioned Hadith.

Answered by: Shaykh, the Allamah, the Trustworthy Advisor, Abu Abdirrahman Yahya bin Ali Al-Hajuri – may Allah preserve him

Source: https://t.me/sh_yahia_duroos/9564

Translated by: Abū ‘Abdillāh ‘Omar bin Yahya Al-‘Akawi