Are you buying your holiday gifts through an online marketplace?
The Suffolk County Sheriff's Office created two Safe Transaction Zones designed to help protect citizens from various crimes associated with online transactions including robberies, thefts and assaults.
The safe transaction zones are located at the Sheriff’s Office, 100 Center Drive Riverhead, NY, and at our Yaphank Facility, 202 Glover Drive, Yaphank, NY. Both are clearly marked with red and white signs and are in full view of on duty Deputy Sheriffs.
Citizens are encouraged to use the marked areas as a place to meet and conduct transactions that require in-person exchanges of online purchases.
Sheriff’s deputies will not participate in the exchanges or act as official witnesses in transactions. Most purchase agreements and transactions are civil matters. However with deputies nearby, the area will be safer for buyers and sellers and will deter criminals who want commit crimes against others.
Citizens are encouraged to use the area during daylight hours and will not have to schedule an appointment with the Sheriff’s Office.
Here are a few safety tips to keep in mind when conducting such transactions:
• Do not go to a transaction alone
• Make sure a friend or family member is aware of the transaction details
• Insist on meeting in a public area like our safe transaction zones
• Do not go into someone else’s house, and do not allow them into yours
• Complete the transaction during daylight hours
• Be extra cautious when buying or selling valuable items such as vehicles and jewelry
• Only use cash or money orders to complete your transactions
• Trust your instincts, if it sounds like a scam it probably is
• If somebody is not willing to come to the Sheriff’s Office to do a transaction it is probably not a legitimate transaction.
Original source can be found here.
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