Technically Incorrect

The Erotic Services section of Craigslist Boston is still full of advertisers vying for attention with exclamation points, heart symbols, stars, and even percentage signs.

However, one ad, posted late Thursday, offered a sober reminder of what happened in Boston over the previous week.

Headlined: "Were You Attacked or Robbed by a Client? (Boston)", the ad asks for further potential victims of the alleged killer who preyed on women through Craigslist to come forward.

Even though Philip Markoff, 22, has been arrested in connection with a murder and an assault in Boston hotels, he is not named in the ad and police said they cannot be sure there are other victims.

(Credit: CC David Hilowitz/Flickr)

Markoff is said to be on suicide watch in jail. And a Facebook group has been formed in his support.

However, it appears that Boston police may have also stepped up their actions against masseuses who advertise on Craigslist.

The site offers two alternatives for those seeking relaxing services. The erotic section seems a little more obvious. But the therapeutic section also offers services that enjoy a level of suggestiveness in their advertising style.

For example, from Friday's therapeutic section: "Hot cougar performing massage today".

However, one ad posted there Thursday evening was headlined: "Police Arrests at BEST ASIAN BODY WORK (CANTON)."

The text of the ad began: "Couldn't help say: I told you so. Police arrested 2 of the staff at this Spa on Thursday, April 16th at noon time. The Canton police are continuing to investigate this 'alleged' spa. They quickly uncovered evidence within a very short time of being anonymously notified, using undercover agents."

It continued: "I'm not sure if they're still open, but it would seem to make sense to stay away and let them close up shop."

Philip Markoff, suspected of killing a woman he met through Craigslist at a Boston hotel, appeared in court Thursday to face charges of murder, armed robbery, and kidnapping.

As he did, Boston police began to reveal more details of a crime that seems to have shocked many for the very sad reason that Mr. Markoff doesn't conform to the supposed image of what a killer should be and look like.

District Attorney Daniel Conley said Tuesday: "He probably thought he was going to get away with it. He thought he was too smart for us."

Police have revealed that in a search of the apartment Mr. Markoff shared with his fiancee, 25-year-old Megan McAllister, they found a semiautomatic weapon, bullets, and duct tape.

They also claim to have found plastic 'zip-tie' handcuffs, similar to those that are said to have been used during the assault and murder of the masseuse who had been contacted through Craigslist, Julissa Brisman.

Police have also begun to theorize that Mr. Markoff's motive may well have been robbery.

(Credit: CC BL Murch/Flickr)

They believe he may have needed money to cover gambling debts. A police source was quoted by several newspapers as suggesting that Mr. Markoff gambled as much as $1,000 a hand at Foxwoods casino.

James Kehoe, a friend of Mr. Markoff's at SUNY Albany, told The New York Times that Mr. Markoff regularly played poker with other students: "He did used to play a lot, into the late hours. He got into debt with the games and kept trying to win it back."

However, the District Attorney seemed less concerned with the motive and more concerned with communicating the nature of the murder: "This was a brutal, vicious crime--savage, and it shows Philip Markoff is a man who is willing to take advantage of women, to hurt them, to beat them, to rob them."

In his court appearance, Mr. Markoff stared straight ahead, blinked with great speed, and said nothing.

He was jailed without bail.

This news comes on the same day that it was revealed that Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist, is to speak at a memorial service for Katherine Olsen, the 24-year-old woman who was murdered in 2007 by a man who found her using a Craigslist ad.

(Updated 08.20 PST with quotes from the accused's fiancee)

On Friday, I wrote about the killer who appeared to be using Craigslist to meet masseuses.

Police said they believe he is responsible for the murder of Julissa Brisman, at the Marriott Copley Place in Boston, as well as several other incidents at Boston hotels.

On Monday, police announced that they have arrested Philip H. Markoff, 22, in connection with the murder. He is a premed student at Boston University, a school spokesman confirmed to the Boston Herald.

(Credit: CC BL Murch/Flickr)

Markoff has been charged with murder, unlawful possession of a firearm, and kidnapping.

The Boston Herald quoted Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis as saying: "We are very, very happy to have this man off the street in such a timely way."

Markoff's fiancee, 25-year-old Megan McAllister, told the Herald on Tuesday: "I will stand by Philip as I know he is innocent."

On an unnamed social networking site, the Herald reported that she wrote: "Philip is a beautiful man inside and out (...) He is intelligent, loyal, and the best fiance a woman could ask for. He would not hurt a fly!"

She has also been e-mailing ABC News. Ms. McAllister is due to marry Markoff on August 14.

It appears that computer experts were among those police turned to in order to track down the suspect.

Craigslist had already stated in these comment pages: "There appears to be a psycho on the loose around Boston. We always help the cops out fast with the help they need from us, but they tell us not to comment on current investigations."

Boston police believe that the killer of a masseuse on Tuesday night at the Marriott Copley Place may have been involved in several other incidents and that he may have selected his victims on Craigslist.

In the latest incident Thursday night, a woman who advertised her as yet unstated services on Craigslist was bound and held at gunpoint at the Holiday Inn Express.

Her description of her attacker appears to match that of a "person of interest" in the murder of masseuse Julissa Brisman, who also advertised her massage services on Craigslist, at the Marriott Copley Place on Tuesday.

Another incident, this time at the Westin Copley Place, in which another woman (and another Craigslist advertiser) was robbed, may also be related.

In the case of the two robberies, the attacker tried to tie the women up with plastic cord. In the case of Ms. Brissman, it appears that she attempted to fight her attacker and was then shot several times in her torso.

The Holiday Inn Express victim appears to have been fortunate that her husband arrived on the scene, leading the attacker to flee.

(Credit: CC BL Murch/Flickr)

Surveillance videos from two of the hotels show that the "person of interest" is a blond-haired, clean-cut man.

Police said the victim at the Westin was involved in prostitution.

Boston happens to be full of social activity this week. As well as Monday's Boston Marathon, the hometown Bruins and Celtics have playoff games. This is perhaps why the Boston Hoteliers Association has declared hotels as some of the safest places to be, thanks to 24-hour security.

But when private arrangements made through Craigslist--arrangements that might not normally arouse suspicion--seem to be the precursors to crime, it's hard to imagine how any hotel can possibly be completely safe.

These incidents don't seem to have discouraged the hundreds of posters offering massage services from plying their trade on the Boston Craigslist. Friday, everything from a "Swedish body rub" to "Marathon Runners Special" to "hot sexy housewife for massage" was being offered.

However, a debate has broken out in Craisglist's therapeutic-services pages, asking people to be careful and suggesting that prostitution be eliminated from the site.

One poster, in the midst of a heated discussion with another poster called Brenda McCarthy, wrote: The point of my post was to warn BOTH the client and therapist to be careful and also to tell the escorts to get off this list."

Another wrote: "Maybe now that there have been TWO murders this week, the hookers and escorts will stop advertising here, and clients will STOP going to them."

She continued: "It is making it a really dangerous place for those who are trying to do a legitimate massage, and have actually trained and bothered to get a license...Be careful, both the client AND the therapists...People are getting crazier."

There has been only one murder, so far, in fact. But these attacks will undoubtedly fuel those, like Sheriff Tom Dart of Illinois County, who want to sue Craigslist for "facilitating prostitution."

However, there will be those who will feel that criminals will always find some way of doing their twisted deeds.

One of the least discussed topics in the world, or at least the world of online advertising, concerns where ads really run.

The case being brought against Google by Boston lawyer Hal K. Levitte, might expose far more than Google's alleged involvement in ads that the wrong people see, or, perhaps, that no one sees at all.

Mr. Levitte, depressingly, looks nothing like Boston Legal's William Shatner.

However, he makes the kind of arguments that Shatner's character, Denny Crane, has long foisted upon unsuspecting bit part actors on the show.

Mr. Levitte seems rather upset that he spent $136.11 with Google and saw no success from this big brand expenditure. (I can already hear Denny Crane crying "UNCONSTITUTIONAL!!!")

He blames the fact that Google slipped a considerable number of the ads- yes, more than 200,000- on parked domain names (internet addresses that are pageless) and another 1000 or so on error pages, the ones that come up when you type a URL that doesn't exist because you've taken one sip too many of your Auntie Jonelle's port.

"Yes," we hiss. "Go get 'em, Mr. Levitte."

Because Google is not alone in sending advertising to the Online Gobi.

(Credit: *sean)

When advertising agencies buy online video, you will find it very rare indeed that anyone from agencies' media planning or buying departments ever bothers to check where the ads actually ran. They're just happy to "fill up their budgets."

So some media owners, like fake Rolex salesman in glamorous upstairs hovels, take advantage by buying up obscure sites and slipping the majority of the purchased frequency onto these sites.

However, just as Denny Crane quickly wafts to flights of argumentative fancy (which he sometimes attributes to his Mad Cow Disease), so Mr. Levitte creates some levitative logic when he suggests that though some people did indeed click through to his law firm's rather barebonesish site, none filled out the form on it.

And, even more cruel, none called or wrote.

No media seller will ever guarantee conversion.

It is the hardest thing to achieve and is not just dependent on the media placement. Surely Mr. Levitte might concede that his site's design and copywriting- or, some might say, the lack of either- just might have contributed to a disappointing return on the tip he left at a fancy Boston restaurant.

I'm sorry, I mean on his $136.11 advertising commitment.

Unless, of course, in a flight of dubiously-engineered confidence, someone at Google promised him conversion.

No, they wouldn't have done that. Not Google. They wouldn't. Would they?

In which case, should Mr. Levitte succeed in his action, one can only imagine what episodes might ensue. One little lawsuit can give birth to some very classy actions.

Just imagine if Viacom discovered that Google was running some of its ads on parked domain pages and error sites.