Back on December 20, 2017, an aggravated robbery was reported in Great Bend when a male arranged a meeting to sell property that was advertised online. The meeting occurred near Stone Lake when the suspect pulled a handgun on the victim and took his property. Eric Duerksen was arrested by officers with the Barton County Sheriff’s Office the following day for the aggravated robbery charge.
Great Bend resident Nichelle Holinde has been thinking about ways to improve safety with online classifieds such as Great Bend: Buy, Sell, Trade, a Facebook group where people can post things to sell and eventually meet up to close the sale.
Nichelle Holinde Audio
Holinde is one of the administrators for Great Bend: Buy, Sell, Trade, a page with nearly 23,000 members. Holinde is proposing a couple of stalls north of the Great Bend Police Department on Lakin Avenue to be the official safe zone to exchange purchases.
Holinde will make her request to the Great Bend City Council Monday, January 15 at 7:30 p.m.
Nichelle Holinde Audio
Holinde says the Larned and Ellsworth communities already have safe zones established for online transactions.