Father tries to sell 4-year-old son for $5000 on Craigslist

The ad was headlined "4 Year old boy - $5000 (Spokane)," included a photo of a young boy and was allegedly posted by the child's father, "Rick Obelophy" aiming to sell his son. 

The classified was spotted by a user last month, who then alerted authorities.

The ad said:

"Gavin is a great kid but I can no longer afford to take care of him. He's 4 years old and loves playing with balls but doesn't really like to play with cars and refuses to eat vegetables. He doesn't fuss very much but when he does he just screams for hours. I usually just put him in the closet until he stops and that usually works."

Craigslist has provided investigators with information about the posting of the ad. 

Officials tried but could "not locate any information pertaining to the name 'Rick Obelophy,'" or the surname "Obelophy." However, investigators reportedly believe that the ad is not a hoax.