Gunfire disrupted a quiet afternoon at Tualatin’s Jurgens Park early this month after an online marketplace transaction escalated into a robbery, threatening the safety of nearby families and visitors.
But it was just one of several Portland-area cases that occurred or came to light in early June, prompting several law agencies to issue warnings and guidance to minimize the risk that online marketplace purchases could turn into life-altering misfortunes.
On June 2 in Tualatin, sellers in a Facebook Marketplace transaction told police that they met with a man who was supposed to pay cash to buy clothing from them, according to Tualatin police. The meeting took place near a walking path in the park’s southeast corner, police said. The area features play structures and event shelters.
After the man laid out several hundred dollars in what appeared to be counterfeit bills, police said the sellers confronted the suspect. In response, the man grabbed the clothing and ran, using a handgun to s shoot several rounds towards the victims, police said.
While no one was injured, the gunshots put park-goers who were present in danger, said Jennifer Massey, spokeswoman for the Tualatin police.
Witnesses said an adult male aged 18-20 fled the park in a vehicle. After investigating tips and observations of community members, police arrested Daniel Jaden Rodriguez Jr., 20, of Portland and booked him into Washington County Jail on June 5. His charges included counts of attempted murder, reckless endangerment, first-degree robbery, first-degree forgery and unlawful use of a weapon, according to a Tualatin police news release.
Helping Tualatin police, the release said, were law-enforcement agencies in Tigard, Sherwood, King City and Portland as well as the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the Washington County Tactical Negotiations Team.
Such agencies have increasingly raised concerns and issued safety recommendations about online marketplaces such as Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist and OfferUp.
Police departments recommend that sellers and buyers research each other and product specifications before agreeing to a transaction. They suggest meeting in highly visible public locations, such as coffee shops, businesses or police stations, especially venues under video surveillance. To meetings, agencies recommend bringing a trusted friend, an at-the-ready cell phone, and alert instincts about a sale or purchase that doesn’t feel right.
Despite such recommendations, several Portland-area transactions that ended in alleged crime occurred early this month, though no police agency has said the incidents are directly connected.
The day after the Tualatin shooting, a man in Portland reportedly was shot and robbed during a Facebook Marketplace meeting, for the sale of headphones, near the 9100 block of Northeast Irving Street. The man reportedly suffered serious injuries.
On June 9, the Portland Police Bureau reported that in another Facebook Marketplace meetup, two juvenile suspects stole an electric bicycle at gunpoint from a home on Southwest Mt. Adams Drive. Through investigation, police arrested two underage suspects.
The police agency seized the occasion to publicly report that its Major Crimes Unit had investigated at least 10 incidents involving online marketplace transactions that escalated into robberies or other crimes since the start of 2026.
“Online marketplaces provide a convenient way for people to buy and sell items, but criminals can take advantage of these transactions when proper precautions are not taken,” a police news release quoted Det. Sgt. Matt Jacobsen of the Major Crimes Unit as saying.
The same day the release came out, KOIN reported a months-earlier Facebook Marketplace sale of an iPhone in Northeast Portland’s Cully Neighborhood that left the Portland man who owned the device to chase the would-be buyer after the latter grabbed the phone and ran to a getaway car. The iPhone seller caught up to the front of the car, KOIN reported, but the alleged thief took off, bucking the seller to the pavement – and causing him multiple leg injuries from which he’s still recovering.
“That changed my life,” KOIN quoted the man as saying.
