Following several crimes occurring during transactions set up on the online classified ad site Craigslist, police have set up "safe zones" to keep people protected when meeting a stranger.
In February 2015, 21-year-old James Jones Jr., a Florida native attending school in Atlanta, was robbed and killed after responding to a Craigslist ad for an iPhone 6. In a separate incident, and a Georgia couple was shot dead in January 2015 while trying to purchase a vintage vehicle from someone on Craigslist.
Urgent: Should All Police Officers Have to Wear Body Cameras?
Police across the country are trying to make sure incidents like this don't happen in their own communities, and are setting up safe zones in or near police stations that are well-lit and constantly under surveillance.
“Typically a bad guy doesn't want to transact bad business in a police department,” Woodstock, Georgia,
police Chief Calvin Moss told "Today."
Craigslist recommends on its safety page that buyers and sellers meet in a public areas and inform a friend or family member about when and where the transaction is being made.
Craigslist particularly recommends exchanges of "high value" items be made in safe zones or at local police stations, but it's not a bad idea to make any exchange in a place that's safe and public.
Items buyers and sellers should especially consider exchanging in a safe zone are:
• Cars
• Boats
• Bicycles
• Televisions
• Smartphones
• Electronics
Vote Now: Does Media Coverage Make Police Officers' Jobs More Dangerous?
Craigslist does not allow the sale of weapons, including guns and parts of guns (even BB guns), nor does it allow the sale of "ammunition, clips, cartridges, reloading materials, gunpowder, fireworks, explosives." If you see these items on Craigslist, you should flag the ad.
In Post Falls, Idaho,
U.S. News and World Report said objects such as beds, dining room sets, antique dishes, snow tires, motorcycle helmets, and framed prints have been sold in safe zones.
Since you can never be too safe, police recommend all Craigslist transactions be made in these safety zones, or at least in well-lit, public areas.
In some cases with large objects, such as furniture, it may not be feasible to meet at a police safe zone. If this is the case, the
Better Business Bureau recommends that whether you're buying or selling, you should never be alone when making a Craigslist transaction.
While, in the grand scheme of things, crimes associated with Cragislist transactions are fairly rare, it's best to be smart about making transactions with strangers.
Tell Us: Does Racism Play a Role in Police Officers' Actions?
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.