I purchased an Iphone 4 in 2014. The phone new and unused. It was not unused and years later the original owner has blocked the phone?

I purchased an Iphone 4 in 2014. The phone new and unused. It was not unused and years later the original owner has blocked the phone?

DUMB STATMENT! NOT A QUESTION!
YOUR PHONE USED OTHER OLD PHONE NUMBER THAT HAD BEEN USED BY ANY OTHER PERSON. TO UNBLOCK THE PHONE, GET YOUR OWN NEW PHONE NUMBER.

So since 2014 the phone was not used and when you go to activate it in 2017, you find that it had been Blacklisted? This is the risk of buying a phone used from an individual. You never know if in fact they are the actual owner or not, and once the phone gets reported lost or stolen, the carriers Blacklist them so they can't be used. And if the original owner defaulted on paying their cell phone bill or paying off the phone, the carriers again, Blacklist the phones so the only way to activated it, is for the original owner to finish paying for the phone (in one lump sum) or pay off that cell phone bill, and the chances of that happening are greater than you getting hit by lightning, in a pool, while teaching a fish to sing opera.