It's probably part of the police mentality of "He's a suspect, that means he's guilty, but if we can't prove it in court we know he'll get off."

So they punish him extrajudicially by taking as much stuff as they can, delaying as long as they can sending it back, and sending it back in as poor condition as possible.

If they Google him and realize he's begging for legal defense funds online, they'll know he's not strong enough to sue them.