Police in Christchurch are getting between 10 and 15 complaints a week.
A 22-year-old is facing multiple fraud charges involving more than $40,000 of goods he allegedly scammed from sellers.
Police allege the arrested man would arrange to buy goods advertised on Facebook Marketplace and when he arrived to pick up the items would show the seller a screenshot of a bank transfer.
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But police say the screenshots were fraudulent and the money had not been transferred, leaving the seller out of pocket. Items included several laptops, a computer and a bike.
Another 22-year-old man is also before the courts in relation to an alleged scam on Facebook Marketplace. He is facing four fraud charges after allegedly selling new power tools on marketplace.
Police allege he opened a business account with a bank, obtained a credit limit and then went to a retail store to purchase about $10,000 of power tools, which he then sold online.
Christchurch fraud squad head Detective Sergeant Don Fisher said anyone could fall victim to the often “faceless crimes” on the unregulated buying and selling platforms.
He wants online buyers to be more aware, setting their own safeguards in place to avoid being scammed and to remember that police aren’t debt collectors.
Far fewer complaints are received about websites like TradeMe, which have systems in place to catch fraudsters, he said.
“People have to take due diligence for their own actions. They see a good deal on Facebook and are prepared to go with it, are they going to come to police when they realise the item is stolen and hand the property over? Or are they only going to complain when they get ripped off?” said Detective Sergeant Fisher.
“You can’t expect to get ripped off and then come to police expecting them to be debt collectors.
“It’s the old story, isn’t it? If it looks too good or sounds too good, it is too good. If it looks like and smells like a pig, it is a pig.”
Safeguards buyers can put in place themselves include asking for payment in cash, doing the transaction in person and taking a photo of the person, their driver licence and their vehicle when you meet.
Said detective Sergeant Fisher: “Say: ‘Look, I don’t want to offend you but this is just to safeguard me, I have heard of so many stories.’ And if they aren’t happy with that, walk away and don’t do the deal.
“If you believe you have been scammed, get onto your bank immediately. They may be able to put a freeze on the account the money is going to. Talk to someone about it, don’t sit on it, confide in someone who is independent of the incident, they may be able to put a clearer picture on it.”
