Ebay Robbery :shock: . Be careful when buying cars for cash!
UK News
Police are investigating the robbery 'A Terrifying Ordeal'
Updated: 15:12, Tuesday August 29, 2006
A man who tried to buy a car advertised on eBay was robbed at gunpoint when he went to hand over the cash, it is reported.
Shahzad Ali Shah, 23, from Crawley, West Sussex, was told by the seller of a Mercedes Benz Kompressor C180 that a cash purchase would secure him his dream car.
Normally, transactions on eBay - an internet auction site - are done via a secure online payment service, cheque or postal order.
Mr Ali Shah told the Daily Mirror: "The man said if I paid in cash he would not offer it to anyone else.
"He said if I had the cash, the car was available and we could do the deal straight away. I put in an offer for £5,500 and he accepted."
The student agreed to meet the seller in east London and was accompanied by his mother and brother-in-law.
When they arrived, four men got out of a Vauxhall Corsa and surrounded the car, the newspaper reported.
Mr Ali Shah said an Asian man produced a gun, took their car keys and demanded the money for the Mercedes.
He said: "One said 'I'll count to three and if you don't hand over the money I'm going to do something'.
"He started counting and got to two and I shouted at my mum to hand it over. It was a terrifying ordeal."
As well as the cash, a purse and credit cards were reportedly stolen.
An eBay spokesman said it was the first such incident involving website users that he was aware of.
"We are working closely with the police in this case and have passed on details of the account holder," he added.
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