Chipping, flashing, jailbreaking

Chipping, flashing, jailbreaking
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Past discussion here and at Forensic Focus have highlighted that when examining mobile phones avoid causing damage etc to them and about ownership of seized mobile phones.
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A seized mobile phone remains the property of the owner until the owner is found guilty (then particular legal mechanisms come into play) or the owner has conducted certain activity or until an Order has been made to permenantly confiscate and dispose of the item.
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I note the issues of those who might say but when we are IMEI checking on the street, confiscating and desposing of mobile phones is not a problem, that is not a blanket legal approach to be applied to everything but to deal with specific matters.
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A further example of the police confirming they do not own seized goods and they may have to be returned to their rightful owner can be seen below.
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http://www.policeprofessional.com/news.aspx?id=9537
"In an interview with The Register, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Janet Williams said work was being done to try to resolve the problem............problematic to people waiting for property to be returned."
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The same applies to returning mobile phones. If you damage or break the mobile phone or alter it to make it irrepairably or lose/delete important data (say an email that constitutes a contract and may lead to economic loss) - these matters can be proceeded against in tort and/or contract law apart from other matters.