I got a call from someone pretending to be my son, Michael, asking for $6,500 for his bail. The weird part is, I don’t have a son named Michael. He even gave me his attorney’s number, but left out one digit. I’m really suspicious because a friend of mine was almost tricked into sending $1,500 for a fake kidnapping scam. Just wanted to warn everyone—don’t send money to people you don’t know. Be extra careful, these scammers are good at tricking people.
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I got a call today from a Nigerian number with a Chinese woman’s picture. It was a WhatsApp call. Feels like they’re not even trying anymore.
Braint said:
I got a call today from a Nigerian number with a Chinese woman’s picture. It was a WhatsApp call. Feels like they’re not even trying anymore.
Yeah, these low-effort scams mostly target people who don’t question things much. They usually work best on the elderly or those who don’t have much experience with this stuff.
Braint said:
I got a call today from a Nigerian number with a Chinese woman’s picture. It was a WhatsApp call. Feels like they’re not even trying anymore.
This sounds like a classic pig-butchering scam. They’re getting desperate with these low-effort scams.
Three things here that make this a scam:
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Why would parents or grandparents pay bail for kids? Even if they’re innocent, a night in jail won’t harm them while you gather more details.
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If I’m paying for something, I want to see paperwork. What does that money actually go towards? I need proof in writing.
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If I pay, I want it traceable. If something goes wrong on their end, I need proof that I paid.
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LillyGrace said:
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LillyGrace said:
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LillyGrace said:
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I got a laugh out of the one scammer who insisted on talking to the ‘kidnappers’ directly, then asked them to hurt his ‘son’. Ridiculous.
Kimberly said:
I got a laugh out of the one scammer who insisted on talking to the ‘kidnappers’ directly, then asked them to hurt his ‘son’. Ridiculous.
Reminds me of that O’Henry story, ‘The Ransom of Red Chief.’ It’s so absurd it’s funny.
These kinds of scams are pretty common, especially when they message through hacked social media accounts asking for urgent help. They just hope to find someone who has a son named Michael and is willing to send money.
LillyGrace said:
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This post was removed due to spam or joke content. Please keep posts relevant to scams and helpful for the community.
LillyGrace said:
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Your post was removed because it was not helpful. This forum is for serious discussions on scams, so please keep your posts focused on relevant topics.
Once, I was ‘kidnapped’… and the scammers called me asking for money. The ‘kidnappers’ weren’t the brightest, that’s for sure.
Both my grandparents would get these calls about me needing bail or hospital payments all the time. Thankfully, they always called my parents to check, and they knew I was out of the country, so I never got caught in one of these scams.
We have a safe word for situations like this. It’s simple to remember, and I remind everyone in the family when we meet up.
Thanks for sharing. This is awful, and I’m glad you’re warning people.
We have a safe word too. It’s a mess out there, and the elderly are especially targeted. Get older family members hooked on YouTube channels that expose these scams.