A Calgary woman frantic to find her missing dog is warning others about people claiming to have found lost pets — and then demanding ransom to get them back.
“It’s a cruel, cruel thing what these people are doing to exploit on people’s sorrow,” Katy Speerstra said.
Her chihuahua named Hamilton ran out of the house chasing a rabbit on Halloween night and hasn’t been seen since.
Speerstra put out signs offering a reward, and said that is when the trouble started.
She said she started getting prank calls and fake texts from people claiming to have found Hamilton, but not willing to give him up unless they were paid large amounts. One text claimed to be from a woman in Banff who said she paid $450 for Hamilton, and wanted to recoup her money.
Speerstra said she then asked for proof it was indeed her pup.
“They sent me this photo which isn’t Hamilton,” she said. “My coworker did a Google search for tan chihuahuas and it was the fourth photo that came up.”
Speerstra said others have told her they can’t give her a photo because they don’t have access to a phone. Some have told her they’ll call her back when they know how much money they want. She said this only adds to her fear that Hamilton isn’t safe.
YYC Pet Recovery is a volunteer-driven group on Facebook that helps reunite owners with their lost pets.
Officials said they’re seeing more of these so-called ransom incidents pop up.
Ashley Hall, a volunteer with the group, said once a reward is offered, scammers tend to come out.
“Just people looking to get some money from somebody that’s in a rough situation,” Hall said.
“Do not be paying any ransoms or rewards until you have proof that it is your pet or that you actually have your pet in hand.”
Calgary police are offering the same warning.
In a statement to Global News, police said they encourage people to report incidents of extortion to police, whether they’ve lost money or not. However, it adds that each case is evaluated on an individual basis and investigative resources are not typically assigned to cases in which a victim has not lost money.
Luckily, Speerstra is pretty scam savvy and didn’t hand over any money. She also has a lot of help trying to locate Hamilton. A group of about 40 people have joined her in looking for her pup: putting up signs and handing out packages.
“If someone has him and they’re playing some game because they want money — these dogs don’t deserve it,” Speerstra said.