Online meet-ups warning: Massage at Flint-area hotel ends in robbery - WJRT

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Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton is warning residents to be careful who they meet up with, from online chats.


GENESEE COUNTY, Mich. (WJRT) - Two Genesee County residents are facing felony charges after the Genesee County Prosecutor's Office says the pair were allegedly involved in an armed robbery in a hotel room.

The suspects may have been involved in a similar incident at a hotel in the Saginaw area.

"Folks need to be very, very careful when they are on the internet and they are looking for certain types of services," said Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton. "You can go online thinking it is a legitimate site, give your credit card, and pretty soon you are fleeced out of thousands of dollars."

According to the prosecutor's office, a 35-year-old man arrived at the Gateway Hotel in Mundy Township on Jan. 26 or 27. He was expecting a massage after he found the service online.

The victim paid $350 on Paypal to Rachel Reed to hold the appointment. But when the man arrived and went to the room, Reed allegedly took a call from the front desk and left.

"Seconds after she leaves, another man walks in with a gun and tells the man on the bed awaiting the massage to leave, " Leyton said. "The problem is he already paid for the massage."

Court records show 26-year-old Reed and her alleged accomplice 35-year-old Martwaz Williams of Mundy Township were both arrested and arraigned on charges of armed robbery and conspiracy to commit an armed robbery.

Both suspects remained in custody at the Genesee County Jail on Thursday while awaiting further court proceedings on Feb. 13.

Reed was charged with larceny for a similar robbery that happened in Saginaw in October, according to police records. That incident was another massage meet-up, gone wrong.

"You have to be extremely careful before you give any type of personal information," Leyton said. "And if you are going to meet up based on arranging on the internet, you just have to do it in a public place, because you just don't know who it is you are going to be meeting with and what their motive is."

The Gateway Hotel did not return a message seeking comment Thursday.