Selling to Lure for Attack

[tkruf]

The may be lengthy and I apologize but bear with me. We've been hunting for a queen size mattress set, for a bargain for the son to replace his full size, something that would be good enough to put guests on when they visit.

There was an ad which advertised new queen mattress sets $125. I called it, the guy says he's got a couple left, that it's not a store front, so he is not there all the time so I would have to set an appointment time to meet him there. I set up the appointment for 1:30pm got the address, mapquest showed me where it was, and we were on the way.

On the way there, I told the wife, you know... something about this seems fishy. "What if" they place an ad, set up an appointment and lure someone in to rob them? It's not a store, you don't know them, the name of the business, nothing. So we decided that when we got there, she would stay in the vehicle, take a description of the guy (if she saw him), his vehicle and tag number, then if something went down, she could at least call 911 and have the info on the guy should he try to get away, and report the incident, etc. Yes of course I was armed.

What do ya'll think?

Here is what actually happened: We showed up, it was a somewhat large building with several offices in it. Doors in various locations around the building and a drive that went all the way around. Several cars out front and a few out on the left side toward the back. I had a 4x8 utility trailer hooked to our suv. I parked on the front right side of the building because I didn't know where in the building this guy was. I walked around the building and on the far back left corner I came to one of the doors and could see through into a room that had some bed sets that were set up just like in the photo that I had seen in the ad and there was a guy sitting right inside the door on the telephone. He didn't see me because he had his back to the door.

I walked back around to the vehicle, got in and drove around the rear of the building from the right side to the left side and pulled up right in front of the door. At this point he saw me pull up. I was already pretty sure at this point that it was safe to enter. It was one large room with some beds set up on the left wall directly in front of the door an open area in middle and some other sets leaning against the wall on the right.

Turns out the guy showed us a "very low quality" full size that was $125 that was "like" the queen sizes. He said the queen sizes will be on the next shipment coming in next week. The other beds, which were shown in the image in the ad were ones he said were $600+ dollars. He honestly thought I was going to drive an hour and a half, give him money down on a bed that was "very low quality" (like something of the quality that comes on a bunk bed) and then come back a week later to pick it up (if he was still there at that). So I asked about one of the other ones he had, lowest price. He showed us his lowest priced set, looked a lot better but he still wanted $260 for it. This was after I asked what his lowest price was on it. He said normally they let him go down $100 off the price but since I came all the way down and he didn't have what I wanted, he'd go down to $260 on it.

I told him, "No Thanks" and we left. I hate when someone tells you they have something, you drive an hour and a half pulling a trailer, wasting your time and gas, and then they don't have what they said they have, and it wasn't quite what they led you to believe it was in the first place.

But,...what about the scenario?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[QKShooter]

People are getting killed, attacked, ambushed, cheated, raped, robbed, carjacked....etc. answering CRAIG'S LIST ads these days. Be careful.

[tkruf]

People are getting killed, attacked, ambushed, cheated, raped, robbed, carjacked....etc. answering CRAIG'S LIST ads these days. Be careful.

Yeah, I know. However it wasn't craigslist. It was a local online site, recycler trading post. However, I'm sure the same could happen on that one too.

[OldVet]

I ain't sleeping on no recycled mattresses. Yuck.

[tkruf]

I ain't sleeping on no recycled mattresses. Yuck.

LOL - Recycler Trading Post is the name of the online site where people list items for sale. Just like Thrifty Nickle, IWANTA, and other classified magazines.

[msgt/ret]

Sounds like the classic “bait and switch” gimmick; good thing you did not fall for it.

[farronwolf]

Did you really expect a "good" mattress set for $125?

Glad everything was safe.

[tkruf]

Did you really expect a "good" mattress set for $125?

Glad everything was safe.

:) I knew somebody would say that. We were hoping! I know the old saying. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. This was it.

[Bark'n]

You get what you pay for in a mattress. Consider that if you strive to get 8 hours of good decent sleep per night, you are essentially spending 1/3 of your life sleeping (I get nowhere near that, and certainly not real restful). It's important for a healthy lifestyle. I'm saving up for a Tempurpedic Mattress. Or maybe a Sleep Number bed. You can expect to pay $2,000 - $4,000 for one. I'm done with $200 mattresses. Never again. At 51 years old, I can use a decent night's sleep.

As far as your scenario goes. Meeting private individuals set up through a classified ad, I always go with at least two armed people and take several other precautions. I also find myself doing less and less transactions that way considering the amount of crime involved in those types of transactions.

[tkruf]

Agreed Bark'n - This bed is mainly for our 8 year old son who can wear out a mattress. 140 lbs bouncing up and down on the mattress playing video games kinda breaks them down. No $2000 bed for him. When he gets older, he can buy his own for that much.

[BigJon10125]

I don't like it and for what you were going to be getting in my mind the risk wasn't worth it. Glad nothing happened, but as bark'n said, a good matress is worth the price.

[gator15]

Yeah I had a buddy that bought a lap top ( or tried to) off of craigslist, got brought into the apartment, they locked the door, put a gun to his head, made him strip down, took the money and ran...like my buddy didnt know where they lived or have one of their phone numbers... how stupid can you get

[Poseidon]

used mattress better be careful bed bugs are everywhere

[QKShooter]

I just want folks to be careful answering any sort of ads these days and not just when you are taking cash to make a possible item purchase.
This mode of crime has really taken off recently with all manner of bad guys.
It may be somebody that wants your vehicle. It may be somebody that wants to jack you and force you to an ATM or any number of possibilities.
The bad guys are getting super creative with folks answering ads especially of the Internet variety.

Yeah, I know. However it wasn't craigslist. It was a local online site, recycler trading post. However, I'm sure the same could happen on that one too.

[ccw9mm]

Lures draw the fish, yes. And it's always sensible to keep the radar up, when going to meet a stranger in a strange location.

Standard precautions can help. Such as, deciding to only go to a brick-and-mortar type shop (as opposed to back-of-car type exchanges); going with a partner; going armed; knowing as much about the person and goods prior to arriving.

Still, no precautions are going to guard against every type of situation. Every other day there is some story about a novel twist on the strong-arm or armed robbery scenario played out in the news. In many cases, the lack of awareness and precautions by the targeted victim contributes to the results. In some cases, a "bait-and-switch" occurs in which the lure is the contact person, while the cohorts wait in the wings for the radar to drop. Worth considering, every time a stranger is met, particularly if met in a strange place. Being taken down is generally as simple as the person being armed and having the will to do it.