The Philadelphia Police Department is out with a warning if you use social media shopping sites. Several people who did got hurt in the process.<\/p>\n
Police said a man traveled from New Jersey to North Philadelphia around 1 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Detectives said he had shopped on Facebook Marketplace for HVAC parts. Instead, police said it was a setup.<\/p>\n
“Once the victim was led to that grassy lot, two other offenders appeared, one of which was armed with a handgun,” Capt. Jason Smith said. “In four of six incidents, our victims were pistol-whipped by one of the offenders.”<\/p>\n
Smith said his detectives thought the Thanksgiving robbery was similar to other cases.<\/p>\n
“We came to the realization that there was a pattern involving these Facebook Marketplace setup robberies,” Smith said.<\/p>\n
Police said at least four of their victims were duped by low-ball offers on newer cars.<\/p>\n
“The offenders were listing vehicles, which were ridiculously low,” Smith said.<\/p>\n
Some ended up in the hospital after police said the robbers beat them. They’re physically OK.<\/p>\n
Detectives said the first happened near 26th and Cumberland streets on Oct. 3. The most recent was two weeks ago.<\/p>\n
On Friday morning, police took four people into custody who they said are connected with the alleged robberies. Police said they recovered seven firearms.<\/p>\n
If you’re using social media shopping sites, make safety a priority.<\/p>\n
“I highly recommend that they use a lobby of a police district for these types of transactions,” Smith said.<\/p>\n
In a statement from Facebook parent company META, they recommend always meeting in a public space, sharing your plan with family and friends, saving conversations in the Messenger app, checking your seller’s profiles and reviews and reporting suspicious behavior or listings.<\/p>\n
The strongest advice from law enforcement:<\/p>\n
“If a deal seems too good to be true, it more than likely is,” Smith said.<\/p>\n
Detectives said if you have any information on these robberies or possible robberies they may not be aware of, call 215-686-TIPS.<\/p>\n
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