Batavia man robbed during sale of iPhones

Batavia police are searching for two suspects responsible for robbing a victim they met online.

Police said the armed robbery occurred 9:50 p.m. Sunday in the 600 block of Hart Road at the home of the victim, who had arranged for a buyer to meet him to purchase two iPhones.

Two people came up to the door, and one asked for the phones. When the victim didn't comply, the other suspect pointed a black semi-automatic pistol at the victim and his juvenile son and demanded the phones.

After taking the phones, the two drove off south in a light-colored, older-model sedan, possibly a Buick.

The suspects were described as Black men in their late teens or early 20s with thin builds.

One was 5 feet, 5 inches to 5 feet, 8 inches tall, about 145 pounds, with short black hair and a short beard, wearing dark pants, a dark long-sleeved shirt and a light-colored face mask.

The other was 5 feet, 9 inches to 5 feet, 11 inches tall, about 165 pounds, wearing a dark baseball hat, dark pants, a dark hooded sweatshirt and a dark face mask.

Images were captured on a doorbell camera, and have been posted to the police department's Facebook page.

Anyone with information about this is asked to call the police Investigations Division at (630) 454-2500.

It is the second time in recent weeks someone in Kane County has been robbed after posting something for sale on the internet and agreeing to have buyers come to their home. At 7:15 p.m. Oct. 30, a resident of Blackberry Township was robbed at gunpoint of a pair of shoes he was selling.

Police departments, including Batavia and the Kane County sheriff, urge sellers to meet buyers in public, highly visible places, such as designated spaces in police-department parking lots. In Batavia, that also includes the lobby of the police department.