20-162 Deputies Investigate Robbery In Palm Harbor; Warns Citizens Of The Dangers In Meeting Strangers For Online Transactions

Who:
Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office
Patrol Operations Bureau

What:
Deputies are investigating a robbery by sudden snatching in Palm Harbor. The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office warns citizens about the dangers in meeting strangers for in-person online transactions.

When:
The crime occurred at about 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 11, 2020.

Where:
The crime occurred in the parking lot of Target at 900 East Lake Road in Palm Harbor.

Why/How:
At approximately 11:00 p.m. on November 11, 2020, deputies responded to a robbery that occurred in the parking lot of the Target located at 900 East Lake Road in Palm Harbor.

According to deputies, a female victim advised she was attempting to sell her laptop through an online application and agreed to meet with the buyer in the Target parking lot.

Deputies say three suspects, two females and one male, arrived at the Target parking lot and the victim walked over to the suspect vehicle for the buyer to inspect the laptop.

Once the victim handed the laptop to the female driver, she accelerated the vehicle in an attempt to leave with the laptop.

The female victim grabbed the door of the suspect vehicle and was dragged several feet. The victim sustained multiple injuries to her knee, hip, wrist, and shoulder. The victim was taken to the hospital for her injuries.

The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office warns citizens about the dangers in meeting strangers for in-person online transactions. If you conduct an on-line transaction, for your safety:

• Meet in a well-lit, populated parking lot during the day.
• If you do not feel right about a transaction, do not go through with it.
• Bring a second person with you.
• Meet and conduct the transaction in a law-enforcement parking lot.
• Ask for identification.

The investigation is on-going.