September 19, 2021
Lee Evancho
Jacksonville City Public Information Officer, Ben Nunnally, shared a new service being provided by the Jacksonville Police Department (JPD). The city Police Department has set up an official spot for buying and selling items from online marketplaces such as Craigslist and Facebook. These transactions can be nerve-wracking because they often involve strangers, but the new Online Safe Sales Site at the Jacksonville Public Safety Complex creates a safe, monitored environment for people to make their sales, get their items and feel secure with a police presence nearby.
Official Release
JACKSONVILLE — Residents buying and selling local items through online marketplaces can meet at the new Online Sales Safe Site at the Jacksonville Public Safety Complex parking lot, a recent addition from the city Police Department that makes transactions safer.
Meeting up for online sales can be risky: Buyers and sellers who arrange transactions online through services such as Facebook and Craigslist often meet face-to-face to finish sales and exchange goods. But meeting strangers in private places can put a person at risk of robbery or other criminal acts.
The new safe site — a parking area marked with a yellow sign just beside the police station — features 360-degree camera monitoring 24 hours a day, bright lights and is just a few yards from the front door of the police department.
“Looking at news reports, there’s always someone trying to sell something online and getting robbed or something like that,” said Chief Marcus Wood. “Being in a college town, and in a professional town with a lot of retirees, it’s important to have a safe space for people to handle those sales.”
Meeting outside will also let shoppers and sellers maintain social distance, making transactions a little safer while COVID remains a concern, especially as the holiday season approaches and people find themselves in the gift-giving (and purchasing) mood.
The Public Safety Complex is located at 911 Public Safety Drive, and the Online Safe Sales Site is located in the large, west parking lot overlooking the pond.
For more information, call Benjamin Nunnally, city public information officer, at 256-782-3818.
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