A civil lawsuit for theft has a statute of limitations of three (3) years from the wrongful act in many states of this country. Most likely the time period for a criminal filing of the possible theft charge would be between three (3) and five (5) years from the alleged wrongful act.Given the fact that so many years have gone by since the alleged incident, even if the family member reported the alleged incident to law enforcement, most likely the district attorney's office would not file a criminal matter against your son based upon my experience in such matters.