Months ago I emailed Anime Link and asked them 
about compiling a list of stolen cels.  As I 
recall from their reply, they said that some of 
the cels were stolen while they were still in the 
hands of the animators (i.e. still lying about in 
the studios).  According to Rick, this is a major 
problem with Japanese cels.  Many of them from 
popular shows get stolen right at the studio.  
{This is a really scary thought if true.)

I believe (again using what I recall from the 
reply) that they said they also don't know 
exactly which ones are stolen.  They know what 
they currently have (which will eventually bare a 
mark of authenticity like the AIC stamp), what 
they've sold, and what the studio gave away as 
gifts.  So I'm thinking (my own opinion/thoughts) 
that if a cel pops up that isn't in one of those 
three categories, it's assumed by Anime Link to 
be stolen.  It seems the "list" is really one of 
omission ... so the general public may never 
actually see one to verify if they've got 
a 'stolen' cel.  Personally, more than anything 
else, I'd like to see some verification that 
Anime Link -is- the sole distributor.  

There's also another problem assuming that Anime 
Link has exclusive rights and cels from the movie 
were actually 'stolen' .... the whole question of 
resale.  There have been some VHD cels that pop 
up on YJ and Ebay which were originally purchased 
from Anime Link and can be resold without worry.  
These cels are mixed right in with 'stolen' 
ones.  So how to tell?  I emailed A-L about ones 
I saw at YJ  and the reply was basically that a 
few were stolen and a few were legit (although I 
never knew which were which).  It seems that 
authenticity of the origins of the cels has 
become such a public thing, we're doomed to be in 
a perpetual circle of ... is it 'stolen' ... is 
it real?