Riverdale Police Chief Casey Warren said in a statement Sunday that Riverdale resident Kai Chuan was “alive but extremely cold” in a tent in the remote mountains near Brigham City. He said he was found in a “scared” condition. He said the boy was probably instructed to isolate himself by the person who committed the scam.
Warren said exchange students, especially from China, are often targeted in virtual kidnappings, adding that victims are often reluctant to “comply with cyber kidnappers out of fear that their families will be harmed if they don’t.” A lot,” he added.
The FBI says the crime can take myriad forms, but it is “always an extortion scheme” in which families are led to believe their loved one has been kidnapped and coerced into paying a ransom. missing is not actually filmed. A statement from the Riverdale Police Department said perpetrators often send audio recordings and photos to convince families that a crime is occurring.
In a statement after the rescue, the Chinese embassy in Washington said Kai’s condition was “currently good” and urged Chinese people living in the United States, especially students, to “raise safety awareness, take necessary precautions and remain vigilant.” I warned you,” he said. “Virtual kidnapping” and other forms of communication and online fraud. ”
Warren said Kai’s high school contacted police on Thursday to report him missing and that his family in China had received photographic evidence showing he was being held captive. Ta. Kai’s host family in Riverdale had no idea he was missing, and there was no evidence that he was “forcibly taken,” police said.
Police said the boy had been “manipulated and controlled” by his assailants in the days before his discovery, and was apparently “isolated at the direction of his cyber kidnappers.”
Police said Cai’s relatives in China received “continuous threats”, resulting in about $80,000 in ransom money being transferred to a Chinese bank account.
Riverdale police worked with the FBI, the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, and Chinese authorities to locate the student, but this time they feared the student would “freeze to death” in the extremely cold temperatures of -9 degrees Fahrenheit. He said he was concerned that there might be. Of year. Police said officers used drones to search the woods and hiked to reach secluded areas before Kai was eventually found camping alone over the weekend. It is said that
“There was no heat source in the tent, just a heating blanket, a sleeping bag, limited food and water, and several phones that were believed to have been used to carry out the cyber kidnapping,” Warren said.
In recent years, FBI officials have issued guidelines that they hope will prevent people from falling victim to scams like the one that occurred in Utah over the weekend. The FBI says the crime, once confined to Mexico and southwestern border states, now affects residents across the United States.
The FBI said the scheme is “an extortion scheme in which victims are tricked into paying a ransom to release a loved one who they believe is under threat of violence or death.” Riverdale police say victims forced into isolation are typically monitored by their perpetrators using Skype or FaceTime calls.
Police say families of those suspected of being kidnapped are usually asked to send ransom payments online, but in some cases cash has been transferred.
According to FBI guidance, you should be wary of calls that do not come from the alleged victim’s phone number and should not call them. “Please do not send money,” Riverdale police added in a statement.
Warren said she was “relieved” that Kai was rescued. The police department shared footage on Facebook of officers standing on snow-covered ground approaching a tent in the desolate area. The video shows the boy holding his head in his hands as officers at the scene try to comfort him.
Kai was examined by medical professionals who cleared him of any concerns, and he only had two requests for the investigators who found him. All I wanted to do was talk to my family and eat a warm cheeseburger. “Both were accomplished,” police said in a statement.