Plymouth, Minnesota - April 21, 2009 – Chilling events have brought Craigslist’s popular online classified advertising service into the headlines yet again. During the last 11 days in Boston and Rhode Island, three more women have been attacked, one woman was murdered, and 50 people were arrested in a prostitution sting. Boston and Rhode Island police say that the common thread in all of the cases is that the victims and those arrested had recently posted or responded to “Erotic Services” or “Casual Encounters” listings on Craigslist.

“I am saddened by these events and absolutely frustrated by craigslist’s responses to these events. It’s really a sheer lack of response,” said TikiWade co-founder, Brad Brager. TikiWade.com, an online classified listings service based in Minnesota, is a competitor to Craigslist.

The New York Times recently quoted Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist, as saying, “Casual Encounters was created in response to user demand for a section that allowed for a wide range of personal meeting and relationship options.” Following the recent murder in Boston, Craigslist’s CEO Jim Buckmaster released a statement that says, “We are evaluating…to see if there are any additional things we can do to better protect craigslist users.”

“I’ll tell you what Craig Newmark and Jim Buckmaster should do. They should simply and completely remove the “Erotic Services” and “Casual Encounters” listings from Craigslist. TikiWade takes a firm stand. We hope that people take a firm stand with us. I’d like the community to know that TikiWade will not allow this kind of activity on your site,” said Brager.

TikiWade.com, LLC. was officially formed in February 2008 as a classified listing service for advertisement of merchandise, real estate, jobs, and professional services, allowing individuals and businesses to market goods and services locally, regionally, and nationally.

Sources: Cable News Network, Associated Press, MetroWest Daily News, New York Times