The North Syracuse, N.Y., Police Department has established an “internet purchase exchange location” for just such meetups.
The zone consists of two parking spaces in front of the police station at 600 South Bay Road in the village.
People who have agreed to a local sale online can meet there to exchange the item being sold. The department said the area is under 24-hour surveillance by a video camera that is constantly recording.
There’s also an emergency telephone for folks to call if needed.
The department is the latest in a growing list of police departments that have established such zones for people who have arranged sales through Facebook, Craigslist and various mobile apps.
As such sales have grown, so too have reports of people being robbed and even killed during the transactions. In March 2018, a 20-year-old man was murdered in Trenton, New Jersey, when he went to buy a PlayStation from a seller from Facebook Marketplace. Two men were later charged with the killing.
The idea for internet exchange zones reportedly started with the Boca Raton police department in Florida after officers took note of several robberies stemming from online sales meetups.
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