Consumer Confidential: An express train to hell: When the caller says your child has been kidnapped
His name is Vince. He's 63, lives in the Central Coast region and works as an environmental consultant. He asked that I not use his last name because the whole thing is still pretty raw and, frankly, he's embarrassed.
Vince recently spent 20 terrible hours being run all over the Southland by people who claimed they were holding his teenage daughter hostage.
He's out thousands of dollars, the latest victim of a scam the FBI says preys on a parent's worst fears.
"There have been hundreds of these calls in Southern California so far this year," said Laura Eimiller, a spokeswoman for the FBI's Los Angeles office. "It's a growing scheme, with victims in predominantly wealthy communities like Beverly Hills."
She said
