Police are warning the public about a growing trend of virtual kidnapping scams that are targeting Hispanic communities in Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles Police Department issued an alert Friday on behalf of its Robbery-Homicide Department, spreading awareness of how these scammers operate and how to stay protected.
“When carrying out these scams, the suspect(s) claim to have a loved one held captive and extort money from the victim for a ‘safe’ release of that loved one, when in fact no kidnapping has occurred,” explained LAPD.
This scam typically starts with a phone call or text message on a private messaging app where the suspects, speaking in Spanish, will claim to be holding a loved one captive.
They will start to list reasons why, the LAPD explained, such as money owed to the cartel for lost narcotics, or something like they were involved in a traffic collision they caused, etc.
The scammers then demand that money be sent or delivered to a specific location in exchange for the release of the loved one.
“In most cases, the victim is told they are being surveilled and to remain on the phone until the money is paid and warned not to call the police or answer any incoming calls,” said LAPD’s release. “In some instances, the suspect(s) contact two family members (such as a husband and wife or a parent and child) at the same time, orchestrating a simultaneous scam that makes each person believe the other has been kidnapped.”
LAPD gave the following recommendations for community members:
- Beware of answering incoming calls from unknown phone numbers, especially with prefix numbers originating from Mexico (+52) and in some cases local area codes.
- Beware of responding to text messages from unknown numbers on private messaging apps.
- Beware of using social media platforms to enlist the community’s help in finding a missing loved one. The suspect(s) take this as an opportunity to contact the user and attempt to extort money using any of the above scenarios.
- If you answer a call with any of the above scenarios, hang up and call or go to your local police agency for assistance.
For more information, police said to contact the Robbery-Homicide Division’s Robbery Special Section at 213-486-6840.
