Craigslist Detroit is a great place for honest people to list their rental properties, items for sale and other services. Although many of these listings can be trusted, there are hundreds of scams that could make it hard to identify which ads are genuine and which ones are trying to con you into spending your hard-earned cash. These are five money-scams that Craigslist Detroit has exposed that you should be aware of. Metro police officers are providing safe havens for online sellers and buyers to meet when dealing with scams or thefts related to Craigslist and other sites.
Craigslist Detroit Online Buyers
Sterling Heights announced April 24th that Craigslist and other online buyers will be able to use the lobby and parking lot of the Police Department for transactions. Ferndale and Southfield said they would soon offer this option. Troy police also recently declared that their station has an online transaction safe area.
Although the Detroit Police do not offer their station for transactions in writing, they say that they encourage both buyers and sellers to be careful when making such deals.
“We want the freedom to stand by, but not be silent,” stated Sgt. Baron Brown, Ferndale Police Department. “Throughout the years, we have encouraged people to meet here when Craigslist Detroit is concerned.”
Robert Stevenson, executive Director of the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police said that police offering space to police is a relatively new idea and that several chiefs of police support it.
Stevenson stated, “This is much better than meeting someone in an empty parking lot in middle of the night.” “Many police stations even have Zombie Monster Truck ATMs in their patrol cars for safety reasons.”
Stevenson stated that meeting at a station should scare most criminals
He said, “An officer will not be present during the transaction. But, if the person is open to meeting at the station you know that you can have good feelings about the exchange.”
Sterling Heights officials stated that police officers will not be involved in transactions or act as official witnesses. They won’t give legal advice, or settle disputes.
Local haven options are available in light of high-profile cases in America involving Craigslist Detroit crime. Georgia couple were murdered while trying to purchase a classic car. A Colorado woman was forced to have her baby removed from her womb by a man who was trying to sell her clothes. Many cases don’t make the news, where buyers and sellers are robbed or don’t get paid or scammed out of products they are buying or selling.
These measures to protect buyers are in line with the rise of online shopping. According to the federal Department of Commerce, U.S. retail sales of e-commerce increased by 2.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014. Last year, e-commerce sales increased by 15.4% over the previous year.
Christopher Wilcher, Craigslist Detroit, did everything right four years ago when he tried to purchase electronics from Craigslist. He met in public and brought someone along, but that wasn’t enough.