Scammer Demanding Ransom for Fake Kidnaping Swindles Thousands from Rochester Mother

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- A Rochester mother is out thousands of dollars after a scammer demanded a ransom for a kidnapping that never happened. 

See Also: Guilty Plea for Hit and Run That Severely Injured Southern Minnesota Child 

Rochester Police Department Communications Coordinator Amanda Grayson says the 30-year-old mother reported getting the call Thursday from a man speaking spanish. 

She said the caller claimed her daughter had been kidnapped and that the child would be killed unless she immediately paid the ransom. 

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Rochester Mother Loses $2,000 to Scammer Who Claimed to Have Kidnapped Her Daughter

The scammer ordered the woman to stay on the phone and go to a market near South Broadway Ave. and 9th St. Southeast to pay the ransom by transferring money to an account in Mexico, the police report says. 

Grayson said the scam victim reported the caller knew personal information about her and her daughter. The victim reported transferring $2,000 to the scammer. 

The daughter was never kidnapped and came home from after school on the same day as the call, Grayson said. Police are investigating the kidnapping scam.

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