Local PD Becomes Official Safe Haven For In-Person Internet Exchanges

Earlier this summer the Chester Borough Police Department decided it would use its campus and surveillance system to help residents feel safer.

Now, with the installation of a sign, it’s become official: 50 North Road in Chester Borough can be used as a safe haven for residents to make in-person transactions for items bought or sold on the Internet.

The full term is Internet Purchase Exchange Location, and the parking lot of the Chester Police Department is now designated as such. The area is monitored 24 hours a day by closed circuit television and the grounds will serve as a safe place for exchanges to be made.

“A resident told us about the idea and we noticed another department in Morris County had done the same thing, and felt our location would be perfect,” Chief David Jara told Patch. “The area is monitored at all times and people making transactions can feel safe meeting here, and not having to go to someone’s house or a private area.”

The option is open to more than just Chester Borough residents, Jara said.

“If someone from Washington Township is making an exchange with someone from Randolph, for example, this is a great meeting point,” he said.

Photo Courtesy Chester Police Department