Serial Killer Conviction Prompts Police To Warn Of Dating App Dangers

The "Tinder" logo is seen on a mobile phone screen on Nov. 24, 2016. A Mapleton man who met up with a woman using the app had his clothing and wallet stolen at a Springfield motel.

(Leon Neal/Getty Images)

A Mapleton man was left naked and without a wallet or phone when a Tinder meet up went terribly, horribly wrong early Tuesday morning.

Springfield Police Sgt. Rich Charboneau said the man had been messaging a woman he met through the dating app for months when the two decided to meet up at the Springfield Village Inn on Mohawk Boulevard.

No dinner. No movie. Just a casual meet-up at a local motor inn.

Charboneau told The Oregonian/OregonLive the evening went something like this:

Upon checking in, the victim told his Tinder date -- whose profile was of a blonde, blue-eyed woman named Ashley -- he was taking a shower. That's when Ashley suggested he leave the door unlocked so she could slip in.

When the man got out of the shower, all of his possessions were missing. The victim tried to pull up Ashley's profile but it had been deleted.

He called the police at approximately 1 a.m.

According to Charboneau, the two had been planning the meeting for months. They were communicating exclusively through the app, Charboneau said.

The sergeant also had a suggestion for those planning an encounter with a Tinder match.

"We recommend that they meet up at a place that is well-lit and safe, preferably not at one in the morning," he said.

For the uninitiated, the Tinder app pulls Facebook data to build dating profiles for its users. It pulls photos from your albums to populate up to five slides to show to potential suitors.

Users' profiles show up like a stack of cards, populated by the app based on proximity.

Swipe right if you like what you see. Swipe left if you're not interested.

If two users swipe right, they get a notification: "You're a match!" You can instant message anyone you match with while those you swipe left on are none the wiser.

The Springfield theft case is by no means unique -- the practice of creating proxy social media accounts to lure victims is called catfishing.

It's become so prevalent, MTV has produced a documentary-style series on the subject. The fifth season of "Catfish" wrapped up in September.

--Eder Campuzano

503.221.4344

@edercampuzano

ecampuzano@oregonian.com