Teen pulls box cutter on seller in video game sale, cops say

BRICK — An agreement to sell a video game console via an app went wrong when the 17-year-old buyer tried to take the item without paying and pulled a weapon on the seller on Saturday, according to police.

The seller, Ryan Demarco of Brick, agreed via the Letgo app to meet a buyer in front of the Maple Leaf apartment complex on Sawmill Road, Brick Police said. The buyer, who used the fake name "Chris Jenkins," reportedly showed up with a second person, also 17 years old, around 3:45 p.m. and said he needed a ride to an ATM to get money for their sale.

After they returned, police said, one of the two buyers got out of the vehicle while the other stayed behind, and after a few minutes took the game and got out of the vehicle, Brick police said. One of the buyers pulled a box cutter on Demarco when Demarco followed, trying to get the console back.

Within two hours, police spotted one of the two suspects near his home at Maple Leaf and arrested him on robbery and weapons offenses, releasing him to the custody of the Juvenile Justice Commission. The other teen was also charged and released to a guardian.

Brick Police Chief James Riccio said that the township has designated a safe exchange zone monitored with webcams in back of the police station, for internet transactions.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ.

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