None of this matters. There is such a thing as abandoned property laws. After the prescribed time the laptop became the sole owner of the business. And the owner of that business can do whatever the fuck he wants with it. Fucking stoooopid!! There are no privacy laws protecting the information on that laptop after it becomes the property of the business. Fucking stooooopid!!! 🤦♂️
Also, as an IT guru (OmniGuru), he should know that it's permitted for an IT professional to access the information on any system under their control. it's LITERALLY what we do.
I've had access to SO MUCH classified data, always at the level my clearance allowed, but I have no "need to know". We can't work with a blindfold on.
Who did anything illegal? I would say Hunter #1 dropped off a PC with what looked like child porn, #2 failed to PAY the shop owner for the services he provided (that's called "theft"), and #3 abandoned the laptop which forced the owner to take possession of the ABANDONED PC. Giving the PC to the FBI ensure the owner will never be reimbursed for the time and materials he expended on this contracted job.
If the laptop was ILLEGALLY retained, why didn't anyone call the Cops to have it returned? Any ideas on that one?
As for "a court would not allow this as evidence," that's so stupid. Evidence that was abandoned by the owner is no longer their property. It's perfectly legal for Law Enforcement to sift through a suspect's trash cans at the curb without a warrant. The trash was not on private property, and the owner of the trash surrendered ownership and control over the trash as soon as he sat it by the curb for pickup.
The laptop is no different. The laptop was voluntarily given to the repair shop for repairs, and subsequently abandoned. If Hunter has walked in after a month and paid the bill, he may have gotten his laptop back.
We aren't talking about a Pawn Shop who makes money by selling collateral used for loans that never get repaid. He's making his money on repair services. He's not likely to illegally keep a laptop for its resale value.