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Man loses everything in Craigslist hoax
An Oregon man has lost nearly all his possessions after a bogus advert on Craigslist offered the contents of his house for free.
Two posts appeared on the site on 22 March stating that Robert Salisbury, an independent contractor, was leaving the area at short notice and was giving away the contents of his house along with his horse.
The first Salisbury knew about it was when he received a call from a woman who had come to pick up his horse.
As he returned home he stopped a truck which contained his work ladders, lawn mower and weed eater. Salisbury told the occupants of the truck of the mistake but they refused to give back his property and drove off.
"I informed them I was the owner, but they refused to give the stuff back," Salisbury told Associated Press.
"They showed me the Craigslist printout and told me they had the right to do what they did."
When Salisbury got to his house he found around 30 people rummaging through his home looking for things to take. Again he told them that the advert was a hoax but again they refused to accept his word.
"They honestly thought that because it appeared on the internet it was true, " he said. "It boggles the mind."
Local police are in contact with Craigslist to find out who posted the advert and are checking several licence plate numbers of looters that Salisbury noted down.
Any items can be returned "no questions asked" but police said that prosecutions will follow if people fail to do so.
This is not the first time that Craigslist has been used improperly. A woman posted a similar advert about her aunt's house last year, while police have busted a prostitut ion ring and an arranged marriage scam on the site.
Robert Salisbury of Jacksonville, Oregon, lived a nightmare of the worst kind last Saturday after hoax ads stating his belongings were free for the taking appeared on the Craig's list.
The ads appeared on the Craig's list on Saturday afternoon; they said that the owner of a Jacksonville home was forced to leave the area immediately and all his belongings, including a horse, were free for the taking.
Too bad the homeowner, later identified as Robert Salisbury, had no plans to leave. He began realizing something was very wrong after he received a call from a woman who had stopped by his house to take his horse.
He immediately made his way home and could not believe his eyes. "I informed them I was the owner, but they refused to give the stuff back," Salisbury said. "They showed me the Craigslist printout and told me they had the right to do what they did."
Approximately 30 people were still busy taking everything was left from the house as Salisbury was trying to stop them in vain. "They honestly thought that because it appeared on the Internet it was true," Salisbury said. "It boggles the mind."
Jacksonville police and Jackson County sheriff's deputies arrived at the scene but several cars packed with Salisbury's property had already fled.
Detectives from Jackson County Sheriff's office have contacted Craigslist's legal team to try to trace the hoax ads and their originators.
Two posts appeared on the site on 22 March stating that Robert Salisbury, an independent contractor, was leaving the area at short notice and was giving away the contents of his house along with his horse.
The first Salisbury knew about it was when he received a call from a woman who had come to pick up his horse.
As he returned home he stopped a truck which contained his work ladders, lawn mower and weed eater. Salisbury told the occupants of the truck of the mistake but they refused to give back his property and drove off.
"I informed them I was the owner, but they refused to give the stuff back," Salisbury told Associated Press.
"They showed me the Craigslist printout and told me they had the right to do what they did."
When Salisbury got to his house he found around 30 people rummaging through his home looking for things to take. Again he told them that the advert was a hoax but again they refused to accept his word.
"They honestly thought that because it appeared on the internet it was true, " he said. "It boggles the mind."
Local police are in contact with Craigslist to find out who posted the advert and are checking several licence plate numbers of looters that Salisbury noted down.
Any items can be returned "no questions asked" but police said that prosecutions will follow if people fail to do so.
This is not the first time that Craigslist has been used improperly. A woman posted a similar advert about her aunt's house last year, while police have busted a prostitut ion ring and an arranged marriage scam on the site.
Robert Salisbury of Jacksonville, Oregon, lived a nightmare of the worst kind last Saturday after hoax ads stating his belongings were free for the taking appeared on the Craig's list.
The ads appeared on the Craig's list on Saturday afternoon; they said that the owner of a Jacksonville home was forced to leave the area immediately and all his belongings, including a horse, were free for the taking.
Too bad the homeowner, later identified as Robert Salisbury, had no plans to leave. He began realizing something was very wrong after he received a call from a woman who had stopped by his house to take his horse.
He immediately made his way home and could not believe his eyes. "I informed them I was the owner, but they refused to give the stuff back," Salisbury said. "They showed me the Craigslist printout and told me they had the right to do what they did."
Approximately 30 people were still busy taking everything was left from the house as Salisbury was trying to stop them in vain. "They honestly thought that because it appeared on the Internet it was true," Salisbury said. "It boggles the mind."
Jacksonville police and Jackson County sheriff's deputies arrived at the scene but several cars packed with Salisbury's property had already fled.
Detectives from Jackson County Sheriff's office have contacted Craigslist's legal team to try to trace the hoax ads and their originators.