MANCHESTER, New Hampshire — An Amber Alert issued this week for a missing mother and her 4-year-old son was “actually a sophisticated phone scam,” Manchester Police said Wednesday.
”There is no indication that the mother and child were in danger,” police said in a statement.
On Tuesday, Manchester Police initiated an Amber Alert for a missing mother and her young son.
“Fortunately, the woman and child were located in the city soon after the alert went out and both were safe,” police said.
Police described how the alert like that could turn out to be a phone scam.
“In these scams, someone calls the victim and says a family member is in trouble. They demand money for the individual’s safe return. The caller insists that the victim not hang up. This is an attempt to shut down any communication with the victim’s family and friends,” police said.
“If this ever happens to you, and you are concerned, stay on the line but use another device to text or email the family member in question to verify that they are safe. If no device is available, write down a phone number and give it to someone else so that they can call for you and also notify the police,” police said.
“The scammer may also ask for other family member’s phone numbers. They then call them, loop them into the scenario and try to prey on them for more money,” police said.
Scammers use VPNs and phone number masking to make it appear like the number is coming from another location. If you ever do wire money or send a gift card and feel unsure of the situation, police urge you to be sure to call the bank or gift card company to put a stop on the payment.
Then, you should always contact police.
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