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 Once there, two men attacked and snatched their cash, shot the
couple in their late 60s with pepper spray and shoved the wife to
the ground.
As alarm rises over violent crimes linked to online classified
websites, police departments across the nation are urging buyers and
sellers to use department lobbies and parking lots to safely meet
strangers and exchange cash for goods.
Police say the 24-hour-surveilled areas, where an armed officer is
just a shout away, fend off routine smack-and-grabs and possibly
even murders and sexual assaults that can occur when criminals
target well-meaning people using online services.
Craigslist is just one of many U.S. online classified websites where
most transactions are completed without incident. But with more than
80 million classified ads each month for jobs, cars, televisions and
other items, it is one of the most popular, and attracts attention
when things go wrong.
According to a tally by the website Law Street, there have been 45
killings connected to Craigslist postings from 2009 through June
2014.
"We were naive," said Wallace, still an avid Craigslist user. "We
remember feeling uncomfortable, but we felt the promise of buying
exactly what we wanted for a good price."
Law enforcement agencies in a handful of states from New Hampshire
to Colorado have pushed "safe zone" campaigns, while Seattle and
Chicago have unofficial arrangements where police encourage people
to meet in public places, including police station lobbies.
"Logistically, we can't sit there and have a police officer
adjudicate each transaction, so it's just to provide a sense of
personal safety for both parties," Chicago police department
spokesman Veejay Zala said.
A bill to designate Florida facilities such as courthouses as safe
havens was passed by the state Senate but has failed to be heard by
a House committee and could die on Friday.
BUYER BEWARE
Violent incidents have attracted national attention. In March, a
pregnant 26-year-old from Colorado went to a home after following an
online advertisement for baby clothes and had her fetus cut from her
womb. She survived but her baby died.
A suburban Atlanta couple were killed in January after seeking to
buy a nonexistent 1966 Mustang convertible, and a Pennsylvania man
was lured to his death last year after responding to an ad seeking
"companionship."
Because police departments are not actively brokering transactions
and some campaigns are new, police have scant data on how effective
they are at crime reduction.
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In Boca Raton, Florida, police in June offered the main parking lot
or lobby for transactions after four Craigslist-related crimes were
reported, and a spokeswoman said they had gotten no such reports
since.
Craigslist did not respond to requests for comment, but the San
Francisco-based service says on its site that the "overwhelming
majority of Craigslist users are trustworthy and well-intentioned."
It has taken steps to promote safety for buyers and sellers,
suggesting meetings in public places or at local police stations and
warns against inviting strangers into one's home.
Following the murder of a 25-year-old masseuse who advertised on
Craigslist in Boston, Craigslist replaced its "erotic services" ads
in 2009 with a new adult category with listings screened by staff.
Users like Fred Wallace welcomed the safe zones but were skeptical
about how often people use them, especially for bulky transactions.
Maggie Hatcher, a Chicago marketing consultant, said she has bought
concert tickets through Craigslist but preferred to arrange a speedy
exchange outside her apartment building in a busy neighborhood.
In Bremerton, Washington, Cristy Taylor, 60, said a police station
would not have worked when she used Craigslist to hire a garden
weeder, purchased an antique fireplace or sold her kitchen cabinets,
which a stranger pried off her wall at no charge.
"I'm really unsure how these things would translate into being
conducted at a police station," Taylor said.
(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle, additional reporting by
Letitia Stein in Tampa and Mary Wisniewski in Chicago; Editing by
Ted Botha)
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