Nov 20, 2009 12:44 pm US/Central
Police Catch Suspect In Craigslist Robbery Wave
Suspect Advertised Items For Sale, Then Robbed Would-Be Customers
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Dwayne Williams is accused of posting items for sale on Craigslist, then robbing the would-be customers.
Chicago Police
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Brothers Jalmar (left) and Jamelle (right) Smalling are accused of posting items for sale on Craigslist, then robbing the would-be customers.
Chicago Police Department/CBS
Police have busted a violent scam on Craigslist, in which the suspects advertised items for sale on the Web site, then robbed the people who came to buy the merchandise.
Calumet Area detectives began searching Craigslist for potentially false ads after a rash of robberies in the same geographical area.
No one was hurt during the attacks, which began in October and continued through early November. All the attacks happened within a three-block range of the 8700 block of South Parnell Avenue, and mostly occurred at night, a Calumet Area police sergeant said.
"What would happen is the victims would email or call Craigslist, and at that point, a prearranged location was decided upon. The person would say meet me at 'X' location and bring $500 bucks with you," the sergeant said. "They would go to that location and the person robbed them."
The items advertised were often electronics, including televisions, the sergeant said. In addition to the cash, Williams would also allegedly sometimes take personal property, such as cell phones, the sergeant said.
Detectives found an ad posted by Dwayne Williams, 20, of the 12000 block of South Justine Street, who claimed to be selling a television. The undercover detectives agreed to meet Williams on Monday in aforementioned block of South Parnell Avenue.
As the undercover detectives came up, Williams promptly pulled out a gun to rob them. The detectives then identified themselves as police officers, leading Williams to try to run away.
But the detectives caught Williams and recovered the gun, police said. The victims of past robberies identified Williams in a lineup.
Williams was charged with 12 counts of robbery in eight cases.
In a similar crime spree being investigated by Wentworth Area detectives, brothers Jalmar and Jamelle Smalling, 19 and 18 respectively, both of the 6600 block of South Bell Avenue, were charged with five counts of armed robbery and one count of attempted armed robbery for trying to rob an undercover arresting officer, police said.
The charges were approved at 1:25 a.m. Thursday, according to police, who said the siblings used an almost identical pattern as the Calumet Area case. When customers would arrive to purchase an item advertised on Craigslist, such as a television, they were led down a gangway and robbed at gunpoint, according to police.
The robberies involving the brothers all occurred within the last two weeks in area of the 6700 block of South Bishop Street, according to police.
One of the six victims is an Evanston doctor doing his residency at a hospital in the area, according to police, who said the doctor drives a Lamborghini. The brothers were only charged with five armed robberies because one of the six victims decided they did not want to pursue the case, according to police, who said the doctor was not the person who did not pursue charges.
Nobody was hurt in the Wentworth Area robberies and no other suspects are being sought in those robberies.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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