VANCOUVER — The Clark County Sheriff’s Office says two men were the victims of separate armed robberies in Vancouver this week, after they used social media dating sites Meetme.com and Tinder to arrange blind dates.
The first robbery occurred around 1:30 a.m., Tue., Nov. 22, at Truman Elementary School, 4505 NE 42nd Ave., Vancouver. The Sheriff’s Office reports that a 23-year-old male had made arrangements through Meetme.com to meet with a female at the Vancouver elementary school. When he arrived, instead of meeting his date, “four or five males wearing masks came out of the shadows and displayed hand guns and demanded all of the victim’s money.”
Police say the victim ran from the scene and waited until Tuesday afternoon to report the incident “as he was embarrassed.”
Later that same day, around 7 p.m., Tue., Nov. 22, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office and Vancouver Police were called to Truman Elementary School for a second report of armed robbery. This time, another 23-year-old male reported that he had arranged to meet a female through the online dating site Tinder. When he arrived at the meet-up site — also at Truman Elementary School — police say “he was confronted by four or five males armed with handguns and they took his vehicle and fled the area.”
Arriving officers searched the area for the suspects, but did not find the alleged robbers. Police later found the second victim’s abandoned vehicle about one mile east of the robbery location.
Both victims described the woman they arranged to meet as a female between the ages of 17 and 23 years old. Police say the male armed robbery suspects were all in their late teens to early 20s, and were all were wearing masks to cover their faces. Four were armed with handguns and one with a rifle, according to the police reports.
Based on the times of the robberies, as well as the manner in which they occurred, police say there is no danger to the students or staff at Truman Elementary School.
The Clark County Sheriff’s Office says this is a good reminder that people should be careful when arranging to meet strangers through online sites.
The investigation is ongoing.
