Cyber ‘Kidnapping’ Scams Target Chinese Students Around the World – Liam Scott & Tracy Liu (VOA News) / Jan 9, 2024
WASHINGTON — A recent cyber kidnapping incident involving a Chinese exchange student in Utah appears to be part of an international pattern in which unknown perpetrators, often masquerading as Chinese police or government officials, target Chinese students around the world and extort their families for upwards of tens of thousands of dollars.
In late December, 17-year-old Chinese student Kai Zhuang was reported missing near Salt Lake City, only to be found days later alone and freezing in a tent in the mountains. Authorities have said the case was part of an apparent cyber kidnapping scheme to scam his family in China out of $80,000.
Cyber kidnapping is when perpetrators pretend to have abducted someone to coerce their family into paying a ransom.
