As the holidays approach, shoppers may want to be cautious of selling and buying items via social media apps.

The concern arises after two separate incidents occurred last week in Athens-Clarke County involving purchases of cell phones after they were advertised on Facebook.

According to a press release sent out by the police department, the victims in both cases were robbed at gunpoint after they saw Facebook postings offering a phone for sale. Both cases happened on Nov. 13 approximately two hours apart.

The release says the first transaction occurred at about noon at 100 Pepperidge Lane. The victim was approached by male who showed a gun and took off with the victim’s wallet.

The second incident occurred later in the day at 2:10 p.m. at 500 Kathwood Drive. However, this victim was approached by multiple suspects, at least one of them showing a gun. The suspects took multiple items from the victim and then left the scene.

In both cases, the victims were not harmed. However, the ACCPD is encouraging those who plan on buying or selling items through social media apps to follow some safety precautions.

Samantha Turner, a University of Georgia student, says she looks at online shopping apps almost every day and buys or sells things almost twice a month strictly from Facebook Marketplace. For Turner, the two recent robberies don’t surprise her because it is getting closer to the holidays. However, there are certain steps she’s taken to keep herself safe.

Although Turner has never been involved in a situation gone wrong, she knows that it can always happen and believes taking these steps are extremely important.

Both of the Athens-Clarke County cases are under investigation, and anyone with information is asked to call Detective Carroll at 762-400-7098 or Micheal.Carroll@accgov.com

Taejah Harper is a senior majoring in journalism and sociology at the University of Georgia.