Victim assaulted, robbed during Facebook Marketplace transactions in Ottawa, police say

Ottawa police are investigating several cases where people trying to sell things online are robbed by prospective buyers. CTV’s Tyler Fleming reports.

The Ottawa Police Robbery Unit is investigating after an individual was assaulted and robbed during a Facebook Marketplace transaction over the weekend.

An individual planned to meet two people at their residence around 7:30 p.m. Sunday for a transaction involving a cellphone.

“However, the situation escalated when the victim was assaulted, and their phone was stolen,” police said on X. “The suspects fled the scene immediately after the robbery.”

The victim was assessed at the scene but did not require transport to the hospital.

• Ottawa Police Chief warns of robberies linked to online sales

Police are reminding people that if you’re buying or selling online, use one of the designated Safe Trade spaces at the Ottawa Police Service headquarters on Elgin Street and at the police stations on Huntmar Drive and St. Joseph Boulevard.

Details about the assault and robbery during a Facebook Marketplace transaction was released one day after the chief warned there had been a rise in personal robberies linked to online sales.

Chief Eric Stubbs says the police service has received at least 10 reports of robberies linked to online sales through sites such as Facebook Marketplace or Kijiji. In one case, pepper spray was used against the victim.

“We just want people to be extremely careful and offer some tips so people cannot be victimized,” Stubbs told Newstalk 580 CFRA’s The Morning Rush with Bill Carroll.

If you can’t travel to a Safe Trade space at a police station, Stubbs urged people not to invite buyers to your personal home.

“We have seen this where people do meet at their residence. Please, do not do that,” Stubbs said.

“If the buyer or the seller, the person that you’re dealing with, wants to change locations at the last minute, don’t allow it. I’m going to reemphasize, don’t conduct the exchange at your residence. Also watch for deals that seem too good to be true, for the buyer or the seller.”

Stubbs says if you are using an online marketplace, review the buyer or sellers profile to make sure they are “legitimate.”

Technology analyst Carmi Levi says scams on Facebook Marketplace are becoming more sophisticated.

“In many cases, even if they have a photo, it could be AI generated or it could be stolen off of another account. So if you really want to find out who they are, do a reverse image search on that imagery to make sure that it is theirs,” Levi said.

“If you can’t identify them, that’s usually a tell as well.”

Levi adds that red flags include the seller wanting a deposit upfront and if they are asking for banking and personal information.

“I don’t have to hand over personal or financial information to anybody. We need to have our antenna way up to look for these in advance and then, report them as fraudulent as soon as we identify them and then move on,” he said.

Stubbs said robberies are about 39 per cent higher overall in Ottawa compared to last year, mostly related to commercial robberies, but he said the 10 incidents of personal robberies linked to online sales is also an increase.

“That online buying and selling, whatever platform you’re using, we really want people think about doing their homework to make sure they keep themselves safe,” Stubbs said.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Ted Raymond and Tyler Fleming