SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio police arrested a man on Thursday who is accused of robbing an individual at gunpoint after arranging a meetup online to buy a gold necklace.
Jerome McKane, 24, faces a felony aggravated robbery charge for his alleged actions on July 22 on the east side.
According to the arrest affidavit, the victim told police he had been messaging McKane over Facebook Marketplace about the sale of a gold chain.
The two men agreed to meet at the H-E-B near North New Braunfels Avenue and East Houston Street. McKane and the victim went to the nearby EZ Pawn shop to make sure the gold was not fake.
After the pawn shop workers confirmed the necklace was authentic, the victim and McKane walked outside.
Arresting documents say McKane pointed a handgun at the victim's head, demanding he hand over his keys, wallet and phone. The victim gave up his property and the suspect took off in his truck.
SAPD recommends people who are buying and selling items online where it involves a meetup, to consider completing the transactions at a police substation.
The six police substations have served as Safe Exchange Zones since 2015.
“Whoever you’re going to meet to buy these items from, if they don’t want to meet at a police substation, maybe that’s a red flag," said SAPD's Ricardo Guzman.
Guzman stressed it's important for people to trust their instincts and be vigilant when taking part in a social media sale. People are not required but have the option to call the substation to ensure an officer is present for the exchange.
“If they want to change the location last minute that’s usually an indication too that this could be a scammer," Guzman said. "If you can stay communicating through the app that’s even better, try not to give out personal information, phone numbers, things like that.”
McKane's bond for the aggravated robbery charge is set at $75,000. He also has two other charges totaling $60,000 for assaults on a peace officer and family member.