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SALT LAKE CITY — Police are looking for a man who allegedly robbed a man at gunpoint while responding to a classifieds ad on ksl.com.
A man made an arrangement to buy a Playstation from a man who had posted an advertisement on KSL Classifieds, according to Salt Lake City Police Detective Dennis McGowan. The man requested that the seller meet him at a parking lot near 1300 S. West Temple at 3 p.m. Thursday.
The seller brought his children with him to meet the man, according to McGowan.
"The suspect pulled out a handgun and told the victim that he was going to take the PlayStation," McGowan said. "So he did, so and took off with the play station."
The man fled south on foot on West Temple. He is described as a white male with a shaved head and the numbers "801" tattood on the back of his scalp — "something very vivid," McGowan said. He also had several tattoos on his arms and shoulders.
Police recommend getting details about the person you are meeting when arranging classified transactions. It is always best to meet in a public area in daylight.
Related:
Man robbed after responding to classified ad
An online classified advertisement for a laptop computer led to a man being robbed at gunpoint Friday."You have the option if something goes south, you can always raise the red flag and alert people around you," McGowan said. "It's probably not the best idea to bring children when you are going to meet a stranger and when there's cash involved."
Police are investigating whether the man who stole the Playstation could have been involved in similar incidents elsewhere in the valley. McGowan siad "it is quite possible" that is the case. He said while crimes like these are not unheard of, people are less likely to be victimized if they use common sense.
"This is a stranger," he said. "It's good to exercise caution and good judgment, common sense, whenever you're dealing with strangers in any case."
