A family in Woodstock, Georgia, learned a difficult lesson about the dangers of posting an online advertisement. The Vercher family, who recently lost their home of 20 years to foreclosure, posted an ad on Craigslist on Tuesday night, informing people that a yard-sale-style giveaway would take place at their home the following day.

Well, on Wednesday morning, people turned out in droves. However, instead of just taking the free furniture that the family had placed outside, crowds ransacked the house, taking nearly everything inside. The Verchers tried to stop people from walking off with their belongings, but their pleas were ignored.

Michael Vercher thinks the wording of the Craigslist ad may have confused people. It read, in part, as follows: "Fairly large, free yard sale. Moving and we want everything to go for free. So come over and take whatever you want and how much you want." Some of the missing items were simply irreplaceable, including two guitars that belonged to Vercher's fiancee; they were given to her by her father.

Vercher hopes the incident was an honest misunderstanding, saying, "You'd like to think there's good people. I hope they would have a good enough heart to bring our stuff back." Although police say it is impossible to track down all the missing items, the Verchers plan to search online to see whether anyone is selling the family's possessions.

[Related: Total Defense Partners With Facebook to Safeguard Users from Online Dangers]

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