Craigslist Safety

By now you are no doubt aware of the Cobb County couple who are missing after traveling to South Georgia to meet someone in reference to a car they found listed on Craigslist. No one knows exactly what went wrong at this point, but we can only speculate that their disappearance was related to the ad. That being said, I wanted to take a moment to remind our citizens to use extreme caution when meeting unknown persons - especially where money or goods will potentially change hands - that you come across online.

The internet is a very dangerous place and sites like Craigslist offer those with nefarious goals direct access to thousands of potential victims. While most of the ads posted on these sites are real and pose no harm, the threat is also real and cannot be overlooked. Consequently, if you must do business online that will ultimately require you to meet unknown individuals, please:

1. arrange said meeting to take place in a highly visible and high traffic public area;
   
2. do not give the other party a description of yourself or the vehicle you will arrive in;
   
3. take others along with you - I realize that the victims in the aforementioned case were together, but couples disappearing is the exception rather than the rule; and
4. (if this is a high value purchase) advise the individual that you will not be bringing cash with you - arrange ahead of time to have a cashier's check made out for the agreed upon purchase price. If they are unwilling to accept that, then the deal should be off.

Don't put yourself at risk for a great deal!

-Chief

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