Considering online dating? The stigma of online personal ads has certainly waned in recent years, and giving it a shot has worked out really well for many D.C. area residents we know. But a story from NBC4 makes the whole concept sound a lot more harrowing than just being worried someone’s picture might make them look 20 pounds lighter than they actually are.

Police in Maryland are looking for a man who meets women through Craigslist personal ads and then rapes them. The suspect has already lured multiple victims through the web site to meet him in buildings in Temple Hills and Suitland. His most recent attack was on a College Park woman who met him in Suitland. When she arrived for their date, the suspect sexually assaulted her at gunpoint.

This is scary stuff, and we’d advise all of our readers to use common sense when online dating: meet in crowded, public places.

And not to make light of there being a possible serial rapist on the loose in the Maryland suburbs, but wow, check out the ad that accompanies this story on NBC4’s web site. Too afraid to try Craigslist? Try eHarmony! Yikes.