Man allegedly stole $150,000 of goods in marketplace scam
PHOTO: REUTERS
A 36-year-old man has been arrested over fleecing Facebook Marketplace users of $150,000 worth of goods.
Detective senior sergeant Ryan Bunting said the arrest came after an investigation into a man who was wanted in relation to 17 deals between November last year and April this year.
Bunting said the man was alleged to have been involved in Facebook Marketplace deals for 17 different vehicles or high value items including phones and jewellery.
The man is alleged to have attended public places to meet the sellers and do bank transfers described as looking very real, including using fake IDs and fake driver's licenses.
However, the sellers have let the goods go with the offender before later realising no transfer has occurred.
"Several vehicles have been recovered and further enquiries are ongoing," Bunting said.
He said police were not ruling out further charges.
The man is set to due to appear in Waitākere District Court on Thursday facing 17 charges of obtaining by deception.
Advice from police when buying or selling on online platforms
Insist on meeting to conduct transactions and examine the item before completing the transaction.
Meet in a public place and take a friend.
Do not go into someone's house or allow them into yours.
Do not deposit money into another person's account before you have received the item.
Ensure that cleared funds have arrived in your account, don't rely on sellers ID, screenshots or viewing funds being transferred on an app.
Trust your instincts - if it's too good to be true or sounds like a scam, it probably is
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