The Lake Havasu City Police Department would like to make the public aware of a recent scam involving someone claiming to have kidnapped the victim’s child. On Friday, November 19 a Lake Havasu City resident received a call from a male subject alleging to have kidnapped her child. The caller demanded a large sum of money, and a child’s voice could be heard in the background. Believing the child to be her daughter, the victim initially complied with the caller’s demands and drove to a local bank.

The Lake Havasu City Police Department became aware of the incident after a friend of the victim, who was also present, called 9-1-1. Officers immediately responded to Nautilus Elementary School, and confirmed that the victim’s children were in class and were not in any danger. The phone number of the caller did not appear to be a standard U.S. phone number. Additionally, due to the statements made by the caller and his repeated request for descriptions of the victim’s surroundings, it is believed that the caller had no knowledge of Lake Havasu City, and was utilizing Google Maps or a similar application to give the victim directions and confirm her location. Ultimately, this threat was determined to be illegitimate before any money was transferred, but the personal nature of the scam still took an emotional toll on the victim and her family.

The police department encourages the community to remain vigilant, as many fraudulent calls are initially very difficult to differentiate from real incidents. Please report any type of fraudulent call and be aware that scammers are constantly devising new schemes in an attempt to get your money. Do not provide your address, phone number, banking, credit card, social security number or any other personal information to anyone that calls you unsolicited. Caller identification can sometimes make it appear the caller is local; however, this is just another tactic used by scammers. Additional consumer tips of things you can do to avoid becoming a victim and find out about current scams can be found at the Federal Trade Commission’s website.

Public Information Officer:  Sergeant Frank Hayden