A Gumtree exchange spelled horror for an east London man when it resulted in him being mugged on his doorstep for the iPhone 6 he was trying to sell.
Shabbir Awan, 30, from Ilford, was attacked after arranging to sell the valuable smartphone to someone he had contacted through the online classifieds site.
The altercation began on his doorstep when the prospective buyer asked to examine the device before handing over payment.
Police said the attacker then ran from the scene, with Mr Awan giving chase and being set upon with an "unidentified sharp object" that left him with a hand injury when he caught up.
Mr Awan told the Ilford Recorder that the incident - which took place last Friday at around 8pm - left him feeling betrayed.
“I have become paranoid every time a car is outside my house – I’m so scared and I can’t sleep," he said.
“I feel betrayed and I want to create awareness that something like this could happen to anyone in broad daylight.”
He told the paper he no longer felt comfortable using the website, which began in London 15 years ago and is now among the largest of its kind.
Gumtree could not immediately be reached for comment, but a spokesman told the Ilford Recorder: “The safety of those who use Gumtree is of the utmost importance to us.
"We have safety prompts which pop up regularly when viewing items on the site and we encourage all users to consult our buying and selling safely tips on our website.”
The Metropolitan Police said the suspect was described as an Asian man aged about 25 years old with brown hair and a "designer" beard.
He was said to be wearing a blue t-shirt with grey shorts and carrying a black Adidas rucksack, and fled the scene in a blue Saab with a white blonde woman.
Contact police using the non emergency number 101 with any information.
