Police: Craigslist used to set up Va. Beach robbery

VIRGINIA BEACH

Police have arrested a 17-year-old girl accused of using Craigslist to lure an Old Dominion University student into a robbery.

About 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, the victim met with a young woman and a man outside a food mart on Newtown Road, Officer Jimmy Barnes, a police spokesman, said Wednesday in an email. They'd arranged the meeting after the victim responded to a Craigslist ad offering an iPhone for sale, Barnes said.

When the pair arrived, they asked to see the money for the purchase. When the victim pulled out several hundred dollars, the girl produced a handgun, grabbed the money and ran to a nearby apartment complex, Barnes said.

Police arrested the teen at her home after tracking the cellphone number used to arrange the meeting, Barnes said.

She was being held without bond Wednesday at the Virginia Beach Juvenile Detention Center on charges of robbery, using a firearm to commit a felony and conspiracy. Police do not release the names of juvenile suspects.

Police still are looking for the male accomplice, Barnes said.

Craigslist is a website that allows users to advertise or solicit goods and services, often anonymously.

Site users should be careful and should always choose public meeting spots because they never know who they're dealing with, Barnes said. Virginia Beach police see about one robbery a week initiated on Craigslist, he said.

Kathy Adams, (757) 222-5155, kathy.adams@pilotonline.com