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Police warning after armed gang carry out string of robberies using fake eBay car ads to lure victims

Jamie Hallam was badly beaten in the terrifying attack - Ferrari Press Agency
Jamie Hallam was badly beaten in the terrifying attack - Ferrari Press Agency

Police have issued a warning to eBay users after an armed gang carried out a string of terrifying robberies by luring their victims with fake car adverts.

The group has struck at least 16 times across the North West of England threatening victims with guns, hammers and machetes in order to steal tens of thousands of pounds.

In the latest incident they attacked a couple from Norwich, who had driven to Manchester after winning an auction to purchase a Mercedes car.

But when they arrived at the address given by the seller they were pounced upon by the gang who violently assaulted them and before stealing £9,000 at gunpoint.

Jamie Hallam, 48, and his girlfriend, Georgina, described how they received a phone call when they arrived at the address checking that they had arrived.

Then a van screeched to a halt blocking their escape and two suspects wearing balaclavas  jumped out and threatened Mr Hallam with the gun.

The driving instructor bravely wrestled with one of the attackers  but the other pointed a gun at his terrified girlfriend who had the cash with her as she sat in their locked car.

Mr Hallam had arranged to buy a Mercedes car after winning an eBay auction
Mr Hallam had arranged to buy a Mercedes car after winning an eBay auction

Mr Hallam was then beaten, sustaining a fractured eye socket and broken cheek bone, until his girlfriend handed over the cash.

Mr Hallam said: "It's the most traumatic experience of our lives. We keep talking about it over and over.

"We have bought a car on eBay before and I did numerous checks which all seemed to come back as legitimate.

"I just didn't imagine anything like this would happen.

He had been reluctant to transfer all of the money because of the distance involved so decided to pay a deposit on PayPal and take the rest in cash with him to collect the vehicle.

He said: "We arrived at the address given on the V5 document. I was about to knock on the door when I got a call from the seller asking if we had arrived yet.

"All of a sudden this van pulled up and two men dressed all in black got out. They had gloves on and were wearing balaclavas to cover their faces.

"I struggled with one of them but realised that the other was pointing the gun at my fiancee who was in our car telling us to hand over the money.

"Then the other guy came round to me and pointed the gun at my head. We had no choice but to hand the money over."

Jamie Hallam and his girlfriend Georgina were robbed of £9,000 at gunpoint
Jamie Hallam and his girlfriend Georgina were robbed of £9,000 at gunpoint

Police believe the same gang have been responsible for a series of similar attacks and are warning eBay users to beware of if they are taking large amounts of cash to buy items.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: "A number of victims have been targeted through false car advertisements on the online auction website Ebay. Between Tuesday 19

November 2019 and Wednesday 22 January 2020, police received 10 reports of armed robberies across Manchester and Oldham.

"Having reviewed several lines of enquiry, detectives are now treating the incidents as linked and are investigating a further six incidents which have been reported as suspicious circumstances.

"On most occasions, offenders falsely advertised a car on Ebay and organised to meet the buyers at a given location for the car sale. On arrival, the potential buyers were threatened with weapons, including with a gun, a hammer and machetes and offenders fled with a large quantity of the victim's cash."

Detective Sergeant Kat McKeown, of GMP's City of Manchester division, said: "These offenders are targeting innocent members of the public via the internet and have no compassion at all for their victims who they have subjected to a number of terrifying ordeals.

"They are devious and ruthless and need to be caught. For this reason, we have a dedicated team of detectives working around the clock to identify those responsible. Though, I would like to take this opportunity to remind people to stay alert and vigilant and report anything suspicious to police immediately."

A spokesman for eBay said: " “We have been supporting Greater Manchester Police with their investigation. We have suspended a number of accounts and continue to cooperate with the authorities while the investigation is ongoing.”