Jez, it's complicated, but as I understand it, Pete was working with Brent Trimble to re-start the brand, and something happened in the partnership to break up the project. Without getting into too many details, that bike should have never left Trimble's possession and it somehow did. The seller legally cannot sell something that belongs to someone else.
Pete is just trying to make sure it doesn't go anywhere while he works on getting the auction removed and the current owner tracked down.