Bad news for Craigslist:  Woman answers ad, found dead  
Monday, October 29th, 2007

Those of us who are internet addicts know what Craigslist is.  Craigslist.org is a popular internet classifieds bulletin board founded by Jim Buckmaster in 2000.  It ranks quite well on Google, so people use it to post classifieds for everything from apartments for rent to job postings, personals, and for sale items.

Police are saying that a Cottage Grove, Minnesota woman's response to an ad seeking a nanny on Craig's List may have been bait for a killer.

Katherine Ann Olson, only 24 years old, was found dead in the trunk of her car late Friday night.  She was last seen by her friends the day before - Thursday morning - when she went to meet someone in Savage about the nanny job posting, hoping to apply.

The man whom police believe placed the ad is a 19-year-old from Savage, and he's currently being held in the Scott County jail pending charges.  Police arrested him at his job at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on Friday night.

"We're confident we have the suspect in custody," Police Capt. David Muelken said.

Katherine had taken nanny jobs at least twice in the past, including one in Turkey, by answering online ads.  Her family said that they were worried about her responding to job postings online, but that she never seemed to worry about it.

Though the suspect is still in custody, charges won't be filed by the Scott County attorney's office until tomorrow morning.  Charges were expected today, but Lori Lambrecht, manager of the Scott County attorney's office, said the office received an extension on filing charges, and will file them by noon on Tuesday.

There have been horror stories like this about MySpace and Craig's List before...everyone ought to be very careful when responding to classified postings over the internet!  A good tip from an internet safety page:

"Be careful meeting people
The first time you meet someone in person, take a friend along or meet and stay in public places. Be sure that someone knows where you're going and when to expect you back. If you have a cellular phone, take it along, and have a friend call periodically. You may wish to take along some form of personal protection just in case. If someone tries to get you into a situation you are not comfortable with, don't hesitate refuse, leave, or do whatever is necessary to protect yourself. Nothing that anyone else does can obligate you to compromise your own safety."

   

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