ST. LOUIS — A man showed up at the hospital with a gunshot wound after trying to purchase sneakers from two men Tuesday afternoon, police said.
Police said the man was near the intersection of Delmar Boulevard and North Euclid Avenue to meet up with two men to buy a pair of Air Jordan sneakers. The victim told police he pulled out some cash to pay for the shoes, at which time one of the men grabbed the money, pulled out a gun and shot the victim in the leg.
Police said the suspects drove away from the shooting scene in a blue, four-door sedan.
The victim had stable vital signs while being treated at the hospital.
How to stay safe when buying or selling through online marketplaces
One thing you can do to keep yourself safe is to do your deal at a police station that provides a safe place for such transactions.
SafeTrade is a collection of police departments that offers their stations for Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace deals.
Local departments that are affiliated with SafeTrade are:
Missouri
- Ballwin
- Chesterfield
- Fairview Heights
- Jefferson County
- O'Fallon
Illinois
- Alton
- Edwardsville
- Fairview Heights
- Madison County
- O'Fallon
SafeTrade offers these tips for online sellers and buyers:
- Agree to meet the buyer or seller of whatever you’re selling (or buying) ONLY at a police station, sheriff’s office or similar law enforcement facility.
- Meet only during daylight hours, unless the police department has offered inside facilities 24 hours a day.
- Meet inside the police office if possible. Many of them offer those facilities. Some require an appointment; others make their lobby or similar open-to-the-public area available.
- If you cannot meet inside the lobby, meet in the parking lot. Typically, they have cameras, and a lot of police officers coming and going. It’s not as safe as indoors, but it’s much safer than the proverbial “meet in a public place.”
