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Authorities in Utah have found a missing 17-year-old Chinese student who was reportedly forced into isolation at the behest of “cyber kidnappers.”
The Riverdale Police Department first asked the public for help finding Kai Zhuang on December 28, after his family in China received his photo and a ransom letter demanding money. .
Police said cyber kidnappers manipulated Zhuang into believing that his family in China was in danger and forced him to isolate in a forested area. As a result of the fake kidnapping plan, Zhuang’s parents paid $80,000 to the cyber kidnappers.
Detectives believe that Mr. Zhuang used the camping equipment, as he was seen on surveillance cameras purchasing camping equipment. Multiple law enforcement agencies began searching for Chiang after learning he had visited the Brigham City Canyon area Saturday night.
On Sunday, the international student was found “very cold and scared” in his tent.
“The victim had no heat source in the tent, a heating blanket, a sleeping bag, limited food and water, and several phones believed to have been used in the cyber kidnapping,” Riverdale Police Chief Casey Warren said in a statement. “I only had that,” he said. To FOX13.
The agency’s investigators walked to the wooded area where Zhuang had been isolated. According to the department, Zhuang was reassured by the law enforcement officer and asked to get a cheeseburger and talk to her family.
The FBI, Chinese Embassy, Brigham City Police Department, Utah DPS Aviation Department, and Weber County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Drone Team assisted Riverdale Police in search efforts.
Police have previously said they do not believe Zhuang was forcibly taken by her kidnappers.
When Zhuang’s parents, who live in China, contacted the high school, the host family did not know about the kidnapping charges.
Chief Warren said in a press conference last week that cyber kidnappers often target foreign students when carrying out fake kidnapping scams. Victims are told that their families are at risk and are instructed to isolate.
They are forced to take photos of themselves suffering, which the cyber kidnappers use to extort money from worried families.
Anyone who believes they have been targeted by a cyber kidnapper is advised to cut off all communications with them and contact law enforcement immediately.
The investigation into the cyber kidnapping plot is still ongoing.
The Riverdale Police Department is asking anyone with information about the incident to contact detectives.