Mounties in Coquitlam are warning the public about a scam involving fake kidnapping and ransom demands.
On Jan.7, officers responded to a report of someone who had been kidnapped and beaten.
The mother of the “kidnapped victim” received a phone call in Taiwan from someone claiming to have kidnapped her 25 year-old son, who lives in Coquitlam.
The woman says she could hear what sounded like someone being beaten in the background and shouting to send money.
The mother immediately contacted other family members in Taiwan and in Coquitlam.
One of the family members in B.C. immediately contacted the police.
The Coquitlam RCMP found the “victim,” who was safe and sound. He claims he had never been kidnapped.
The man’s family was than alerted that the kidnapping was, in fact, a hoax before any ransom money was paid to the alleged kidnappers.
“Though this incident turned out to be a scam, we take these kinds of reports very seriously. We want people to know that if this happens to them, they need to call us immediately,” said Constable Jamie Chung with Coquitlam RCMP.
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