• March 29, 2024

‘They Threatened to Kill Her’: Wisconsin Police Warn of Terrifying New Phone Scam Going Around

A Milwaukee-area mother got a call saying her daughter was being held hostage and unless she paid, they were going to kill her. It turned out the frightening scam is happening to others in the area and cost one family hundreds of dollars.

“They threatened to kill her. They (said they) had a gun to her head and her boyfriend’s head,” the mother told WISN 12 News.

WISN 12 News is not identifying this Waukesha County mom for safety’s sake, but she said last weekend she got a frightening call there had been a car accident involving her daughter, and they were holding her hostage. They had just enough information to make the call seem real.

“(He said) the accident had damaged his brother’s car, and his brother and he were running from the law, so they couldn’t involve the police, and they wanted $3,000,” the mother said.

The call went on for almost a half-hour.

“Then they said they were going to rape her. I wasn’t moving fast enough. They wanted me to get to Western Union,” the mother said.

The victim reached out to her brother for help. He was shopping at the Piggly Wiggly in Hartland and contacted police. She also got someone else to reach her daughter. Her daughter was able to message back saying she was not a hostage, and the nightmare ended.

“If you don’t recognize the number, screen the call, let it go to your voicemail,” Hartland Police Chief Robert Rosch said.

Rosch said if a call like that gets through, it’s important not to panic. New technology helps scammers make you think they’re legitimate.

“They can sit in some basement somewhere or some foreign country and make believe this is a legitimate call coming to you,” Rosch said.

“Most traumatic 28 minutes that I’ve ever been involved in,” the mother said.

In another case, Fox Point police said the scammer tied up the victim’s phone so the family couldn’t verify if their loved one was being held hostage.

That family paid $1,500.

Found at WISN 

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