The moment a Leeds gamer was mugged at knifepoint for more than £600 by thugs pretending to sell PS5 on Facebook

Keen gamer Mark Lee, from Chapel Allerton in Leeds, thought he had found himself a bargain when he found someone selling a PlayStation 5 on Facebook Marketplace.

The seller insisted he pay in cash and gave him an address at which to collect the console on New Year's Eve.

However as he approached the address, 22-year-old Mark was confronted by two hooded thugs in an alleyway who drew out long knives and threatened to stab him if he didn’t hand over the cash.

Mark, who went to school at The Grammar School at Leeds and is now a secondary school teacher, said: “I had been so excited to pick up that PlayStation 5, I expected to go home with it and be able to spend the night playing games with my friends.

“But instead, these two men approached me as I was walking along an alleyway and brought out these huge knives - and I immediately felt dread.

“I was terrified and in complete shock - I just gave them my whole wallet and sprinted in the opposite direction.

“I knew there were scammers out there, but I had no idea how serious and violent they could get - these men were threatening to kill me.

“I was gutted after it happened because I also lost all the money I had saved up - but nothing is worth more than your life.”

The music teacher ended up handing the thugs his wallet as he fled the scene, fearing for his life.

Mark had come to collect the console from an address on Avery Avenue near Smethwick, West Birmingham after he was house-sitting in Birmingham for the holidays.

He first reached out to a Facebook user selling a PlayStation 5 on December 30 after scouring the internet for one of the rare consoles.

He jumped at the chance when he saw one on sale for £625 on Facebook Marketplace, and didn't question it when the seller told him to come and pick it up.

The seller, who was using a Facebook account called ‘Hamza Khan’ to advertise the console, instructed Mark to meet him at 5pm on December 31 with the £625 cash payment.

Mark, who works in Banbury, Oxfordshire, said: “I was so excited to pick up the console.

“I secured my first job as a teacher in September, so I wanted to reward myself.

“The seller seemed completely normal while I was talking to him over messages - I certainly wasn’t expecting to be threatened with a knife when I went to meet him.”

After confirming his name, he said both men, who were wearing dark tracksuits, drew out “long matte black serrated blades” which they threatened to kill him with if he didn’t hand over the £625 cash.

He said: “My immediate feeling was one of total dread and fear.

“When they held these huge knives to my chest, I could hardly process what was going on, I clammed up and fumbled around.

“It must have taken me around a minute to get hold of my wallet because I was panicking so much, I genuinely thought they would kill me."

The horrified man recalled thrusting his entire wallet into the hands of one of the muggers before fleeing in the opposite direction.

He called West Midlands Police to report the incident afterwards, who have since been investigating.

Mark finally returned home safely later that evening, where he said his worried girlfriend, Alicja Humeniuk, aged 24, was waiting for him with a cup of tea.

He said: “I can’t quite believe what happened - I had no idea someone would go to the extent of threatening to kill someone as part of a scam.

“I’m glad just I gave them the money and ran.

“I remember thinking to myself, ‘You can’t mess around with these people.’

“I would have loved the PlayStation, but at the end of the day, nothing is worth your life.”

A West Midlands Police spokesman said: "We've launched an investigation after a man was robbed of a significant amount of cash having arranged online to meet someone to buy a games console.

"The man was instructed to go to Avery Avenue, Birmingham, and while walking down a cut through he was approached by two Asian males who threatened him with a knife and stole the cash.

"A police dog and handler was sent to the scene to track for any scent and local searches conducted. Detectives are trawling CCTV in the hope of identifying the offenders.

"Anyone with information is asked to message us on Live Chat through our website or call us on 101 quoting crime ref 20BW/327592P/20."