Hamilton Police are warning the community to be careful when arranging locations for merchandise being sold from online sites, after two incidents they believe are related, occurred over the weekend.

On Jan. 6, police received a call that a 22-year-old had been robbed at gunpoint while making a Kijiji transaction in the back of a car.

The victim told police he was selling his coat online and made arrangements to meet up with the buyer at the intersection of Goulding Ave. and Scenic Rd. shortly before 8:30 p.m.

He says he sat in the back seat and had a handgun pointed towards him, while the men in the front demanded to hand over his jacket and cellphone.

The victim complied, and was “pistol-whipped” before he was able to leave.

Earlier that day, a similar report came from the parking lot of 977 Golf Links Road in Ancaster.

Shortly after 5 p.m, a 21 year old went to the parking lot to sell his iPhone.

He was suspicious and refused to sit in the back of the buyer’s vehicle, so the unknown men in the car, left.

The three men are described as:

#1- Male, Black, 20-25, 5’11 ft, 140 lbs, short braided dreadlocks. Wearing dark joggers and a thin hoodie.

#2 – Male, Black, 20-25, 6’3 ft, 200-250 lbs, husky build and short black hair. Wearing a dark jacket. 

#3- Male, black, 6′ ft, stocky build, short black hair. 

The men were driving a dark colour 4-door SUV, similar to a Ford Escape or Honda CRV.

See example of Honda CRV below:

Hamilton police are encouraging people to make transactions in a safe, well-lit, public area, and to bring a second person with you.

They are reminding people to never meet someone in a private location or have people you do not know, come to your home.

Niagara regional police have a “safe exchange space” in Welland, and Peel police have one set up as well.

If you have any information that could assist police call Detective Constable Tracey Constable from the Division 3 Criminal Investigations Unit at 905-546-8965 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.