This post is under 24 hour video surveillance

August 24, 2016 8:26 AM

Brockville, Ontario is the newest place to add an Internet Purchase Exchange location to their municipality -- this one in a video surveilled section of the police parking lot. The idea seems to be relatively recent, but catching on, starting with one of the first in Mobile, Alabama and now with locations in Texas, Massachusetts, Virginia, Utah, and across Canada. With over 100 murders now linked to Craigslist, is this an idea whose time has come?
posted by Shepherd (24 comments total)

Baltimore is way ahead of you.
posted by entropicamericana at 8:30 AM on August 24, 2016

It's not like have this sort of thing hurts, but what was wrong with meeting at the McDonalds, 7-Eleven, or any other public place?
posted by explosion at 8:36 AM on August 24, 2016 [2 favorites]

watch for the deletion of this comment
posted by beerperson at 8:39 AM on August 24, 2016 [1 favorite]

Starbucks is now officially useless.

Still barely any public shitters in Ontario, so not quite.
posted by Evstar at 8:43 AM on August 24, 2016 [2 favorites]

Sorry, this is off topic but:

Hello #mefi c. 2005!
posted by Evstar at 8:48 AM on August 24, 2016

This would not have helped with Boston or Ohio murders mentioned in the "100 murders..." article.
posted by maryr at 8:53 AM on August 24, 2016

My brother took a $700 under market loss on selling his 4 wheeler (he lives in Florida, bless this poor child) a couple months back so he could sell to a friend of a friend, because he "didn't want internet freaks knowing" where he lived and this seemed safer. "You can meet craigslist people at a police station, you know, you don't have to give anyone your home address," I told him. It literally never occurred to him to have the sale location be anywhere other than his apartment.
posted by phunniemee at 9:02 AM on August 24, 2016 [6 favorites]

It's not like have this sort of thing hurts, but what was wrong with meeting at the McDonalds, 7-Eleven, or any other public place?

If something goes wrong, I'd prefer knowing that the police are right there.
Of course, I'm a white-presenting cis-appearing person, so YMMV.
posted by Etrigan at 9:06 AM on August 24, 2016 [2 favorites]

It's not like have this sort of thing hurts, but what was wrong with meeting at the McDonalds, 7-Eleven, or any other public place?

A person might not rob you at a 7-11, but they might still scam you.
Probably less likely to do that in a police parking lot.

The DMV in my town has set aside a corner for car sales, which makes a lot of sense. Unfortunately, they got rid of the express window, so you still need to take a number.
posted by madajb at 9:13 AM on August 24, 2016

When the world's dumbest drug dealer gets caught at one of these things in a police parking lot, remember me as the person who said "told you so."
posted by MCMikeNamara at 9:44 AM on August 24, 2016 [2 favorites]

a guy in Milwaukee just got shot in front of a police station while he was conducting a Craigslist transaction
posted by AFABulous at 9:47 AM on August 24, 2016 [5 favorites]

I don't know why people think police stations and their surrounding areas are safer. There is probably a much higher frequency of criminals in and around police stations than anywhere else.

It's like avoiding illness by going to a hospital.

So you won't get robbed by internet customer/seller. Just by someone else in the area.
posted by srboisvert at 9:50 AM on August 24, 2016

We have one of these spots and I have never, ever seen anyone at it, but maybe they're doing it all when I'm not looking. It seems like a good idea but I also can't imagine using it myself, it feels a bit accusatory or something?
posted by epanalepsis at 9:50 AM on August 24, 2016

Whoa, do people do this to sell furniture and other large items on Craigslist? Do you all own pickup trucks or something? I admit I'm pretty deep into living in suburbia, but so far I've resisted the lifted pickup w/ loud aftermarket exhaust motif.
posted by indubitable at 10:00 AM on August 24, 2016

It certainly makes sense to be careful when selling things to a stranger, but I remember this sort of thing being a problem with newspaper classified ads before either Craigslist or the Internet existed. I seem to remember one local serial killer or rapist who met his victims that way back in the 80s.
posted by TedW at 10:19 AM on August 24, 2016 [1 favorite]

With over 100 murders now linked to Craigslist

Does that include journalism?

On the topic of these safe selling locations, I suppose one of the reasons people originally bought and sold at the village market was that it was a place where there was a greater degree of (public) supervision than transactions conducted in private.
posted by Busy Old Fool at 10:39 AM on August 24, 2016 [1 favorite]

Our police department set aside a room for this sort of transaction, in the lobby area of the main station and visible from the receptionist's desk. I think it's a nice public outreach thing; anything that makes the police more accessible to the community and puts them in a less adversarial position w/r/t the community is good. I know a couple people who've used it although mostly people don't seem that fussed about the dangers of Craigslist buyers.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 10:44 AM on August 24, 2016 [2 favorites]

Whoa, do people do this to sell furniture and other large items on Craigslist?

Doubtful. But there's other ways to be "safer" when conducting internet transactions of bulky items.

For example, I'm selling a motorcycle right now, and plan to have it sitting in the driveway with the garage door closed behind it when they arrive to take a look -- no need for them to see what's in my house/garage. There's the not-so-great "I am holding $2000 in cash and it's Sunday afternoon" problem that might come after a sale, but since I need the driver's name and address for the bill of sale, I'll be taking a picture of their driver's license. If I somehow get "randomly" targeted for a robbery after that, I'm confident that I could give the cops a good lead.

On the other hand, if at all possible, if I'm selling something physically small, I'll meet in a public place that has security cameras. I prefer that as a buyer as well. If I have to go to someone's house, I bring Mr. Motion along -- if it's big enough that we have to go inside the house, he's there "to help me load it." If it's small, he can stay in the car but I'll expect the seller to want to conduct the transaction outside. I make an exception for little old ladies selling craft supplies because I am ageist and sexist.
posted by sparklemotion at 12:57 PM on August 24, 2016 [3 favorites]

Maybe I'm paranoid, but if I have to let strangers into my house in order to sell something, I'm going to give whatever it is to Goodwill instead. No way I'm letting random people into my house! Also I'm not going into anyone else's house to buy something.
posted by WalkerWestridge at 2:03 PM on August 24, 2016 [1 favorite]

I guess after Tim Bosma, anything's possible.

(nb: trigger warnings a-plenty there. It's a rabbit hole of holy fuck.)
posted by scruss at 3:03 PM on August 24, 2016

SW Ohio has had this since January 2016 also.

And I suspect a great many other counties in various states have added such areas.
posted by J.W. at 8:41 PM on August 24, 2016

When I sell or buy on Craigslist, if I can not Google the other party, I don't bother with following through. I'll do this for the $60 guitar pedal I just bought, or for the $1100 synthesizer in the suburbs from a couple of years ago.

I sell less frequently (who doesn't, right?) but have had strangers in my house on a few occasions - again, Googe-lable strangers. But I've also taken to meeting at a popular bar in the city, something that I think eases the troubles of everyone involved in changing ownership of an Ibanez Destroyer bass guitar
posted by Leviathant at 5:09 AM on August 25, 2016 [2 favorites]

I really wish there was a better solution to large items. I feel like in ye olden days that was consignment shops, but whens the last time you saw one of those?

I spent years being one of those people who would go in to someones basement to buy a $20 computer doodad, but holy crap have i had some weird experiences. Now, whenever someone asks me where i want to meet, i'd say one of these places or starbucks.

But what if i like... am trying to buy a fridge? Or a new couch?

So. Many. Awkward. Experiences.

Not to mention people wanting to pay me $20 to load a couch into their 7th floor skinny external stairway walkup in the rain.

Half the reason i keep at it though is the bizarre houses i've seen. Where it's like some grandkid selling off stuff from their 90 year old grandmas house and the entire place is frozen in time in 1948.

Also, a downside of not going to the persons house, people seem to forget some important bit or cord or required doodad to use/test something like half the time. It usually doesn't seem like bad faith to hide an issue, and it's often a $5 fob that snaps on or whatever... but then it starts the awkward dance of "well we both drove all the way here, do i walk away leaving you pissed or do i offer you like 20% less or more because i can't try it out and come off like a sharky asshole regardless of whether that's reasonable?"

Sooooo many times of that.

It's complicated.
posted by emptythought at 12:11 PM on August 25, 2016 [2 favorites]

The police station in my tiny rural Western Massachusetts town set one of these spots up in their parking lot recently. I think it's a good idea. I'd see people on the local Facebook B/S/T site plan to meet in the grocery store parking lot, but the police station is probably safer.
posted by apricot at 5:27 PM on August 25, 2016