TOLEDO, Ohio — Several people in Toledo were robbed at gunpoint after agreeing to meet a stranger on Facebook or an app.
The Toledo Police Department has investigated four police reports for robbery with a deadly weapon in the last two months.
Two of the four victims met the suspect or suspects through Facebook Marketplace, one through the LetGo App and one through Snapchat.
The suspects all pulled out handguns and robbed the victims of their cash or items.
The incidents occurred throughout various parts of the city and mainly during late hours.
In one incident that took place in early January, the victim had shopped for a phone on the LetGo app and scheduled a meeting with the seller at Ottawa Cover Apartments. The victim was greeted by two women when a man wearing a grey hoodie and red bandana around his face came out from the corner of the building. The man pointed a gun at the victim and demanded the $425 brought for the phone. The three suspects all fled back around the building.
When some of the victims tried to look the suspects up again on social media, the suspects' accounts or profiles were deleted.
"To verify a user, you can check to see when they joined a site. You can check their rating and past history of interactions with people. If they have no rating or interaction, that could be a red flag," Lt. Kellie Lenhardt with TPD said.
At least one suspect was arrested in these cases.
A safe and secure place to do an online exchange is at the police's designated zone at Scott Park on 2301 Nebraska Ave. It's staffed with an officer 24-hours a-day, seven-days-a-week.