Worried About Meeting A Stranger For Craigslist Sale? East Chicago Cops Will Oversee It
(CBS) – Lots of people turn to Craigslist when looking for a bargain -- or to sell off some unwanted stuff.
But meeting a stranger can be dangerous.
Now, there's a new place to go to safely seal the deal. CBS 2's Ed Curran reports.
Cash is king on Craigslist. But you're taking a chance meeting a stranger with a wad of bills in your pocket. In East Chicago, Ind., police chief Mark Becker says why not meet at the police station?
It's called Operation Safe Sale.
The idea came from Officer Bill Jansky. And let's face it, a bad guy doesn't want to meet you at a building populated by police and covered with cameras.
"If their reaction is, 'Well, I don't want to do that,' that should send up some flares and flags and you should know well, maybe I shouldn't be dealing with this person," Becker says.
During certain hours, the police can provide an officer and even run a serial number or vehicle identification number.
"Crooks do dumb things, I get that, but hopefully they won't bring something stolen into a police department and sell it," the chief says.
The offer to use the East Chicago Department is open to anyone, 24 hours a day. If you'd like to have a police officer present, the hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday.