Fearing wife’s safety, man empties bank account for fake kidnappers - Shepherd Digest Magazine

Some fake kidnappers made a man to divulge all the information relating to his bank accounts, emptying everything in the process.

The rogues had called the man, informing him that they had kidnapped his wife, threatening to kill her unless the man do as told.

The man, who lives in Anchorage, Alaska, USA, was one of the latest victims of a stream of phone scams which the Federal Bureau of Investigation said was on the rise.

The man, who wishes to remain anonymous, was contacted last week while at work. He received a telephone call that looked like it was coming from his wife’s telephone number and was led to believe the callers had his wife in custody and were going to rape and kill her if he didn’t comply with their demands.

According to the KTVA news, after hearing a woman he believed was his wife screaming, he followed an elaborate set of directions and aggressive demands. The man ended up withdrawing funds from his bank, giving up his credit card information, and purchasing numerous Visa gift cards, relinquishing those numbers as well while on the phone with the criminals.

Even though the man was reportedly alerting numerous people of his plight via written notes, including his co-workers, bank employees, and the police, he and his wife, nevertheless, ended up losing all their savings to the crooks.

“I withdrew the money myself,” the man said. “I basically robbed myself … I had situation that I believed was absolutely real.”

While he was on the phone with the scammers, officers told the husband that they had reached his wife and that she was safe.

“Finally I was really beginning to lose patience, so I started asking them: “I want to speak to my wife, I want to speak to my wife — I’m not doing anything else until I speak to my wife.’ And at that point, they hung up, and the ordeal was over,” the man said.

This type of faked kidnapping scam has become very common in America, the news outlet reports.

The FBI and other law enforcement agencies point out that the success of these virtual kidnapping schemes depends on speed and the victims’ fear.

They recommend trying to slow down the process, asking questions of the callers to gain as much information as you can, and either getting them to call you back or asking them to call you back — all of which can potentially buy you time to alert the authorities and confirm the whereabouts and status of your loved ones.

The best course of action, says the FBI, is to hang up the phone.