Buying or selling on Craigslist? VPD opens doors to deals

Vancouver police headquarters on Cambie Street is shown in this undated file image. (CTV)

Vancouver police are offering Craigslist users a safe space and a little peace of mind for completing high-risk transactions.

The VPD replied to a suggestion on Twitter, saying it would welcome Craigslist meetups in public spaces at the Cambie Street detachment, such as in the lobby or the parking lot.

The department is following the lead of police detachments in several U.S. cities that have opened their doors to people exchanging cash and high-risk goods, in a bid to deter would-be scammers.

“Obviously the police stations would be a safe place to conduct a transaction like that,” said Const. Brian Montague. “It obviously would be a deterrent to someone on Craigslist who’s using it as a criminal tool.”

Even the simple act of suggesting to a Craigslist buyer or seller to meet at a cop station might be enough to tell whether you can trust the person, he said.

“The reaction you get from the buyer or seller will tell you a lot about who that person is, and whether or not this is a legitimate transaction,” said Montague.

But that doesn’t mean anyone selling an armoire or a lamp should head down to the police building.

“There are some logistical challenges if we all of a sudden do have hundreds of people showing up,” he said. “We are limited in the space that we have.”

He said sales of tickets and pricey, unique items like jewelry could be considered “high-risk” items.

Online classified sites like Craigslist and Kijiji have been the subject of unfortunate headlines in Canada and the U.S. after reports of people being robbed during meetups.

One of the highest-profile Canadian cases came in the summer of 2013, when Hamilton resident Tim Bosma was murdered in a pickup truck sale gone wrong.