Armed suspects forced victim to drive to Virginia home, robbed him, then left him in Maryland: police

Armed robbers force victim to drive to Virginia, then abandon him in Maryland

D.C. police are looking for at least three suspects connected to an armed kidnapping that spanned across the DMV this weekend. According to the Metropolitan Police Department, around 12:30 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 25, a man arranged to meet up with someone via social media to sell some items. The victim and suspect agreed to meet at 25th Street and L Street, Northwest, but when the victim arrived, multiple people got out of a car and pulled out guns. FOX 5's Lili Zheng has the story.

WASHINGTON - D.C. police are looking for at least three suspects connected to an armed kidnapping that spanned across the DMV this weekend.

According to the Metropolitan Police Department, around 12:30 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 25, a man arranged to meet up with someone via social media to sell some items. The victim and suspect agreed to meet at 25th Street and L Street, Northwest, but when the victim arrived, multiple people got out of a car and pulled out guns.

The suspects forced the victim into his own vehicle and drove the victim to his home in McLean, Virginia, where they took money and property from the victim.

Capt. Christopher Dorsey with MPD confirmed on Monday that the victim intended to sell high-end shoes during the transaction.

"I do want to highlight to really be wary of who you're selling to in the middle of the night. You should really look for well-lit areas, and know who you’re selling it to," Capt. Dorsey said.

The victim was then driven to District Heights, Maryland, where the suspects fled the scene. The victim was able to contact the Prince George’s County Police Department several hours later.

DC police searching for armed kidnapping suspects

D.C. police are searching for armed kidnapping suspects who allegedly forced a man to give them items from his home in Virginia, then drove him out to Maryland where they left him.

Though Dorsey was unable to confirm which social media platform was being used for this particular sale, most people FOX 5 spoke with said they had experienced using Facebook Marketplace to either sell or buy items.

Sammy Sorayanejed recently moved to D.C. from Dubai and said he has never had an issue meeting up with people for online transactions.

"It’s pretty safe for me. I was just like, yo…let’s meet at this parking lot. Some guys bought some shoes off me and I had no problems with it," Sorayanejed said. "Over here, I haven’t used Facebook Marketplace. I wouldn’t know about here. I assume I would probably take the same like measure, realistically speaking. I wouldn’t go further to ask about my safety. I wouldn’t think about that."

Kenya Phillips said she used an online platform years ago to sell and buy items.

"I do know it’s risky. It’s a catch-22 situation sometimes, but my girlfriend…she actually sells a lot of things online, and knows a lot of people always selling stuff," Phillips said. "Yeah, it’s a risk, but a lot of times, it’s the best value for your money."

Phillips works in the area where the alleged armed kidnapping happened.

"If it’s in an open area like this, maybe you might want to be a little suspect if you don’t have a valid address of something, you could actually Google and see where it’s located. But yeah, I mean. I’m not surprised. I mean, it could be in the most ritziest neighborhood and you still kind of get caught up," she said.

The suspects were caught on surveillance cameras. D.C. police are continuing to investigate this incident along with the Fairfax County Police Department and the Prince George’s County Police Department.

Anyone who can identify these suspects or has any information is asked to call police at (202) 727-9099 or text a tip to 50411.

MPD is also encouraging residents to use designated Safe Exchange Zones when meeting up with people to complete transactions from online market platforms. MPD Safe Exchange zones can be found at every district station and the Special Operations Division’s Harbor Patrol.