Craigslist Pet Ad Leads to Robbery

A Bartow County man may have fallen victim to serious crime as a result of Craigslist, the online classifieds site linked to numerous murders and robberies across the country.

The 25-year-old from White said he went to Roth Lane in Cartersville about 8 Wednesday night to meet with a man he knew as "E," according to a incident report. 

E was interested in buying a pit bull the victim had posted on Craiglist, he said after deputies found him bleeding from lacerations to the head. The victim's truck, in which authorities saw a medium-sized dog, had crashed on Cedar Creek Road.

Deputies questioned the victim concerning the crash due to an open container of alcohol in the truck and the smell of the substance on his person, but a witness corroborated the victim's statement that the man driving the truck had fled on foot through the woods.

The victim, a dog trainer, said E encouraged him to drive to the end of Cedar Creek Road, where E's mother lives, to drop off the dog. But when they stopped at a , E pulled a gun, pointed it at the victim's head, and demanded money and insisted on driving the vehicle.

While the victim said he felt uneasy when E asked to drive the truck, which was prior to the alleged armed robbery, he called an apparent acquaintance of both men and was assured E was "good."

The victim said he thought E, who took $10 of the victim's $11, was going to "shoot him and leave him for dead," so he pulled a knife from his pocket and went for the gun.

During the struggle, E lost control of the vehicle, the victim said. When authorities arrived, he was cut, was bleeding from the left side of his face and complained of dizziness, but he declined medical attention.

Deputies were unable to locate the second man in the woods. The victim was released.

A 2011 study found Craigslist “a cesspool of crime,” according to a report in International Business Times. The study—which linked the website with 330 crimes, including 12 murders and 105 robberies or assaults, across the country in 2010—found criminals exploit the anonymity of Craigslist to rob, assault or even kill those trying to buy and sell.

But some say it's the media driving fears of online classifieds, noting the study was funded by a Craigslist competitor, according to a Tech Dirt report.

Take a look at ABC's News Channel 5 report on notable Craigslist crime and tru TV's "The Illicit List: Crime and Craigslist" and decide for yourself.