N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 424

§ 424. Stolen or impounded motor vehicles. 1. (a) Agencies which are\nmembers of the New York statewide police information network shall\nreport any theft, recovery or impounding of a motor vehicle, trailer or\npart or parts thereof to such network. Agencies which are not members of\nthe New York statewide police information network shall make such\nreports through a member agency. Such reports shall if possible contain\nat least the vehicle identification number, the date of theft, recovery\nor impounding of the vehicle, the license plate number and where the\nvehicle was stolen, recovered or impounded and the name, address and\ntelephone number of the facility where such vehicle has been stored.\nSuch information shall be made available to the commissioner of motor\nvehicles. The commissioner may assist in providing information with\nrespect to stolen or recovered motor vehicles, trailers and parts as he\nmay deem advisable.\n (b) For the purposes of this subdivision the term "impound" shall be\ndeemed to include the taking into possession by an agency of any motor\nvehicle which has been abandoned, repossessed, seized pending forfeiture\nproceedings, taken into custody or held as evidence in the course of a\npolice investigation, required to be impounded by law, or in any other\nway taken into possession or held by an agency under circumstances in\nwhich the owner may not reasonably have knowledge of the status of the\nvehicle. Nothing contained herein shall preclude a police department,\nwhich has taken a vehicle into custody under these or other\ncircumstances, from entering a vehicle into the New York statewide\npolice information network as an impounded vehicle to facilitate\nlocation of the vehicle by its owner.\n 2. Any policeman, state trooper or peace officer acting pursuant to\nhis special duties shall have the power to seize any motor vehicle or\ntrailer in the state when there is good reason to believe that such\nmotor vehicle or trailer has been stolen. Unless the vehicle is subject\nto the provisions of section four hundred twenty-three-a of this\narticle, the appropriate agency shall contact the owner of such motor\nvehicle or trailer, if known, and, after any stolen vehicle alarm\nresulting from such theft has been cancelled, release the vehicle to\nsuch owner. If the owner thereof cannot be ascertained in accordance\nwith procedures established by regulations of the commissioner, a local\npolice agency shall dispose of such vehicle as an abandoned vehicle\npursuant to section twelve hundred twenty-four of this chapter, and the\nstate police shall hold such vehicle for, or deliver it to the office of\ngeneral services.\n