Idaho Parents: Are You And Your Family Safe From Virtual Kidnapping?

This is super scary for those of us with kids and it happened recently very close to us in Utah....a father received a phone call from his crying and distraught daughter saying she'd been kidnapped.

This is a new scam called "Virtual Kidnapping" that preys on parents to get them to pay money to get their child back, when in fact their child hasn't been kidnapped at all. But when you receive a call from a frantic and crying child saying daddy please help me, it really is hard to tell if it really is the voice of your child, especially if your child isn't at home at the time the call comes in...

According to Fox 13 news in Salt Lake City, this virtual kidnapping scam is currently happening in the Salt Lake area. A father who was targeted recently shared his story with Fox News.

The man was at work recently when his cellphone rang…when he answered the phone, he heard a young girl crying “daddy, daddy, I’m scared.” Then a strange man’s voice came on the phone and told him that if he ever wanted to see his daughter again to not hang up or tell anybody. The guy says, 'You know I'll kill her. You'll never see her again.

The man managed to work with coworkers to contact his wife who, along with the girl's mother, who quickly went to the girl's school to confirm she was safe, which she was

Which means that the phone call was a scam preying on the fear he had for his daughters safety designed to scam him out of money They immediately called the Salt Lake police department to file a report, but the police say that there is almost no hope in capturing and charging virtual kidnappers.

A few days later, the family received another call from another unknown number, this time his wife answered and she recorded the call….. They knew it was a scam and told the virtual kidnapper exactly how they felt about his fake kidnapping calls. Before hanging up, the virtual kidnapper said, “Fine, I will just find somebody else to rob!”

Salt Lake Police say, that if you ever get a call like this, keep the virtual kidnapper on the phone as long as you can. Then try to find a way to call your son or daughter to make sure they are safe...then call the police.

Another option is to do like I do and just don’t answer your phone unless it’s from a number that you recognize.  I always assume that it’s a sales or scam call and if I’m wrong and it’s indeed someone I know and it’s important, they will leave me a message and I will always call them right back.  It’s, unfortunately just one of the many precautions that in this day and age you have to take to protect yourself and your family.

Damn, where is Liam Neeson when you really need him.