Customers of J.J.H McLean and Company, a longtime Winnipeg piano shop that shut down last year, are still trying to get back money that is owed to them.

J.J.H. McLean closed its store on Portage Avenue in the summer of 2011, after more than 130 years in business. (CBC)

J.J.H. McLean closed its doors in the summer of 2011, after more than 130 years in business, much to the surprise of people who had pianos on consignment there for resale.

The CBC's I-Team reported in June that at least a dozen individuals and organizations have been trying to get answers from Ian Fennell, who owned the store when it closed.

Marj Birley says she went to J.J.H. McLean in 2010 to sell her Petrof grand piano on consignment.

Birley said at the time, Fennell told her he could sell it for more than $19,000. But months later, Birley's phone calls were not being returned.

"I walked up to the building and looked in — there's huge windows on the outside of the building — [and] it's empty," she told CBC News on Thursday.

Birley said she was awarded $10,000 in small claims court, but she later learned she cannot get her money because J.J.H. McLean's bank accounts are closed.

Marj Birley says she went to J.J.H. McLean in 2010 to sell her Petrof grand piano on consignment. She was later awarded $10,000 in small claims court, but then she learned the company's bank accounts are closed. (Marjorie Dowhos/CBC)

Birley said she suspects she'll never see the money or her grand piano again.

"I think I'm at a dead end," she said.

Theresa Wayne, another consignor who won against J.J.H. McLean in small claims court, said she also learned that the company has no money with which to pay her.

"I feel that somehow the law isn't clear, because we were told that this could not happen," Wayne said.

Police say the case is a civil matter, while the Manitoba government says it's a police matter.

A police spokesperson told CBC News the store and Fennell “are subjects of interest” right now.

"As this is currently an ongoing investigation we will not be providing any further comment," the spokesperson said.

CBC News' calls to Fennell this week were not returned.

In June, Fennell said he has been trying to deal with each case individually, but he would not say how many people are still owed money.