With a fake kidnapping, previously unknown perpetrators tried to extort money from a Chinese student in Munich and her family in China. According to the Munich police on Monday, the 22-year-old language student received a call from alleged Chinese security officials in August. They told the woman that her bank account was involved in money laundering. To avoid trouble, she should transfer the equivalent of 200,000 euros to a foreign account.
Because the student from Liaoning Province didn’t have that much money, she initially transferred the equivalent of 37,000 euros. The perpetrators then instructed them to isolate themselves from the outside world and to rent a hotel. Under the pretext that she had been kidnapped by the Italian mafia, she was supposed to get her parents to pay the remaining amount as ransom.
However, the parents became suspicious and informed both the Chinese police and the Munich university where their daughter is studying. She had not been seen there for ten days, which is why two employees contacted the Munich police. At first it was assumed that it was a real kidnapping. After the officials had identified the hotel in the station area from which the student kept in touch with her parents via messenger service, a special task force arrived. However, the 22-year-old found this alone in the hotel room.
The student will not have to fear any criminal consequences because of the fake kidnapping. According to the police, it is still unclear how the fraudsters got their contact details. One thing is certain: the “virtual kidnapping” scam has been around for several years. So far it has mainly been found in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Victims are mostly Chinese students abroad. International media reports often mention that the victims send videos or photos of themselves in handcuffs to support their demands. The police left open whether this was also the case with the Munich student.