Will Apple Store take a “locked to owner” device as trade in?

I recently was given a phone as an emergency device as my main phone is experiencing some tech issue n is continually Resetting itself to the point where it unhooksfrom the whole network, and I lose all service. A friend of mine told me his brother had an additional device he had found, but that it was screen code locked. The device didn’t show an iCloud lock or any contact details other than an emergency contact in Europe. I was able to do a firmware update and bypass the screen code but the device now shows as a “locked to owner” device. I attempted to contact the previous owner to no avail. So the phone is just sitting there useless and the only thing I can think of doing is trading it in directly to Apple. Will apple take this device? my friend and He does not want it back.