EBAY ROBBERY TERROR
Couple lose £9,000 in ambush by gun thugs behind spate of fake car adverts used to lure victims
A COUPLE who successfully bid for a Mercedes on eBay were robbed of £9,000 by masked gunmen when they went to collect the vehicle and hand over the cash.
Jamie Hallam, 48, and fiancee Georgina arrived at the address the car was registered at when two men in balaclavas jumped out of a van and ambushed them.
Mr Hallam wrestled with one but he was badly beaten before the other thug held a pistol to Georgina’s head. They had no choice but to hand over the cash.
They are believed to be the latest victims of a ruthless gang behind at least nine similar attacks using fake eBay car adverts over the past two months.
Driving instructor Mr Hallam said: ‘It’s the most traumatic experience of our lives. We keep talking about it over and over.
‘We have bought a car on eBay before and I did numerous checks which all seemed to come back as legitimate. I just didn’t imagine anything like this would happen.’
Mr Hallam paid a £100 deposit online after bidding £9,100 for the
GLA sports utility vehicle on the auction website.
He opted to pay the rest by cash on collection and he and Georgina drove 190 miles from their home in Norwich to the address in Manchester where it was registered.
Mr Hallam said: ‘I was about to knock on the door when I got a call from the seller asking if we had arrived yet.
‘All of a sudden this van pulled up and two men dressed all in black got out. They had gloves on and were wearing balaclavas to cover their faces.
‘I struggled with one of them but realised that the other was pointing the gun at my fiancee – who was in our car – telling us to hand over the money. Then the other guy came round to me and pointed the gun at my head.’
He ended up being badly beaten by the robbers and suffered a fractured eye socket, cheek bone and nose – and may require surgery. Mr Hallam added: ‘It’s not so much the physical injuries – it’s more the psychological trauma.
‘My fiancee is really shaken by the ordeal.’
He recounted the terrifying January 17 attack on Facebook to warn others. Mr Hallam said: ‘These things really do happen to us normal people out there so please think twice before you pay cash for anything.’ Greater Manchester Police said there had been at least nine similar robberies between November and January. A further six cases are also being investigated.
The victims were all innocent members of the public targeted through fake car adverts on eBay.
The criminals manage to get all the details of the car, including photos, to make the sale look legitimate. They are then thought to wait near the registered address before pouncing.
A police spokesman said: ‘ On most occasions, offenders falsely advertised a car on eBay and organised to meet the buyers at a given location for the car sale.
‘On arrival, the potential buyers were threatened with weapons, including with a gun, a hammer and machetes and offenders fled with a large quantity of the victims’ cash.’
Detective Sergeant Kat McKeown added: ‘ These offenders are targeting innocent members of the public via the internet and have no compassion at all for their victims who they have subjected to a number of terrifying ordeals. They are devious and ruthless and need to be caught.’
‘Gun pointed at my fiancee’